


Life to the Fullest

by allyrei



Category: The Simpsons
Genre: Cheating, Coming of Age, Developing Relationship, Family Drama, Friendship, Multi, Swearing, Teenage Drama, Trauma, Underage Drinking, Underage Drug Use
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-06-20
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2020-05-15 10:46:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 47,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19294159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allyrei/pseuds/allyrei
Summary: If life was fair, then what would it be worth living? Maybe the Simpson kids and their companions will understand seven years into the future.





	1. Ready or Not, Here I Come

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.
> 
> I accept constructive criticism. c:

_Buzz. Buzz. Buzz._

'Alright, shut up already.'

Slamming her fist on the alarm clock, Lisa sat up groggily. For a second, she didn’t understand why her clock was on until she sat up and realized why.

‘The first day of tenth grade…’

Out of nowhere, a rather loud racket started playing from down the hall.

 _ _'__ Ugh, really Bart?' Lisa's thoughts were interrupted as she heard nu-metal being blasted from the room next to hers. Not too long after, a deep voice bellowed from further down the hallway.

"BART! Turn that crap down!" shouted Homer. Today was one of his few days off and to be woken up by such a racket had set him off. 

"Aw, come on man, this is the best part!" "Unless it's going to put me back to sleep, then turn it down!" For a few more seconds, the screeching vocals reverberated down the hall until the music was cut off, leaving silence in the hallway.

'That's more like it. Only two more years and I'm out of here.'

The chaos having woken her up completely, the 15 year-old clambered out of bed before opening her door, peeking out to see that the bathroom door was ajar. Grinning, she celebrated the thought of getting ready in peace before grabbing her necessities and running to the bathroom. The leftover steam from Bart’s shower and scent of his Irish Spring body wash smacked her in the face, causing her to wrinkle her nose as she shut the door and set her stuff down on the counter. Reaching over to turn the water on, she pulled the lever down to get it to come out of the showerhead as she waited for it to warm up.

As Lisa waited, she turned to the mirror and studied herself. Her hair was only slightly longer, enough to curl instead of sticking out in straight spikes like before. In addition, bangs fell over her left eyebrow, a decision encouraged by a dear friend by the name of Alex Whitney. Lisa was happy to see that she was growing, height-wise and shape-wise. She was nearly as tall as Marge now with a slender waist and budding curves that promised to show in another year or so; she wasn’t very eager to show them though, opting to hide them from the horndogs known as high school boys.

The Simpson girl had opted to become a little more active in the last year, much to the surprise of everyone; it was no secret that gym wasn’t her strong suit. She didn’t have time to join any official sports in school but instead chose to go for weekly jogs around the neighborhood, usually with a friend or two. The work had been grueling in the beginning but it paid off in the form of a slightly toned form that left her feeling more confident.

Giving her mirrored self a smile, she held her hand under the water stream and was satisfied with the temperature. Before getting undressed, she gave herself a little pep talk.

‘Let’s see what tenth grade has in store for Lisa Marie Simpson.’

~•~•~•~

Rummaging through his drawers, Bart groaned to himself as he couldn’t settle on which shirt to wear.

‘All these damn shirts and I can’t even pick one…aha!’

With a grin, he plucked a white t-shirt enscripted with Pink Floyd’s The Wall on it, choosing to wear it under an orange button-up shirt along with some ripped jeans. Tugging on his clothes quickly, he walked up to his mirror and grabbed a comb, raking it through his shoulder-length hair before tying the strands into a ponytail at the nape of his neck. Marge had been nagging him for years to get a proper haircut but he refused time and time again until she gave up and stopped asking, knowing how stubborn her oldest could be. Sometimes he was too much like his father.

Once he was put together, Bart looked at himself in the mirror closely before sighing.

‘So…this is what it’s like to be a senior.’

To his and everyone else’s shock, Bart Simpson was entering his final year of high school. Not only that, he was looking to go to college as well. For what exactly, he wasn’t quite sure but it was better than nothing. He had cleaned up his act a bit a couple of years ago after a serious suspension from school nearly ended up with him back in juvie. Seeing just how close he came to being sent away again and the toll it took on his parents as they scrambled to cover the damages he caused, Bart took it upon himself to get his shit together for once in his life. Taking up a summer job by mowing lawns, much to the suspicion of his neighbors, he used whatever change he scrounged up to give to his parents to help with costs. He can still remember the way Marge crushed him in a hug and the proud look Homer gave him that day.

He continued the side jobs until school started back up and the weather started cooling down. The money was drying up and he roamed the town looking for someone to hire him. Unfortunately, many still thought of the Simpson boy as a troublemaker and refused to employ him as they brought other people in for interviews. Just as he was about to give up, he saw that the Android’s Dungeon had a ‘help wanted’ sign.

While he was surprised that someone like Comic Book Guy was looking for assistance, he was even more surprised when he gave him the job, seeing as they didn’t have the most positive history. From the age of 16, Bart was assistant manager of the Android’s Dungeon and Baseball Card Shop. It didn’t pay a huge amount but he was hoping it was enough to help him with college along with some personal spending money.

“Kids, breakfast is ready! Come eat before you’re late for school!” Hearing that scratchy voice echo from downstairs, Bart grabbed his backpack from his desk chair and gave his reflection finger-guns.

‘Senior year, here comes Bartholomew Jojo Simpson!’

~•~•~•~

“Maggie, are you excited for third grade today?”

At her mother’s question, Maggie nodded eagerly while cutting up her pancakes. “Yup! I hope I get Mr. Tasker as my homeroom teacher again, he’s always so cool. Plus I get to see my friends again, I can’t wait!”

Smiling at her youngest daughter’s excitement, Marge finished setting down three more plates at the table seconds before her oldest child strutted into the room, giving her cheek a kiss before sitting down at his usual spot.

“Morning mom. ‘Sup Mags?” Reaching his fist across the table, Bart bumped eagerly against Maggie’s own little fist before tucking into his pancakes.

“Good morning sweetie. Oh, I can’t believe my little man is starting his senior year today!” Sighing wistfully, Marge started pouring orange juice into three glasses before setting them down next to the plates. “It seems like just yesterday I was changing your diapers and pulling you off of the apartment clothesline…”

Shaking his head as his mother reminisced, Bart gave his mom a reassuring smile. “Relax mom, it’s not like I’ll be going anywhere right away. You’ve still got me until June, y’know.”

“I know, it’s just…”

“Morning everyone!” chirped Lisa as she nearly ran in and skidded into her own seat at the table.

The Simpson matriarch frowned at her daughter’s rushed entrance. “Good morning honey. Is everything alright? You’re not usually the last to reach the table, especially for pancakes.” Lisa waved her hands at her mother as she worried. “Mom, I’m fine. I was just putting some… extra attention on my outfit today, that’s all.”

As the middle child explained her tardiness, Marge took in her appearance. The 15 year-old was wearing a lightweight V-neck sweater in the shade of her old red dress with the sleeves rolled up to her forearms. Lisa wore simple dark wash jeans on her legs and her knee-high brown fringe boots that she had begged for as a birthday present earlier in the year. Around her neck was her old pearl necklace that she refused to part with and on her ears were matching earrings that she had bought once her ears were pierced. And on her lips was…clear gloss?

Her daughter was right; she was putting extra attention on her outfit. The young girl who didn’t care about her outfits being fashionable was now putting in the most effort she had ever seen.

Her children were growing up right before her eyes.

“Well, you look beautiful today, Lisa. Now eat your breakfast before it gets cold.” Lisa didn’t need to be told twice as she drenched her pancakes with syrup before slicing into the stack with delight. Swallowing her first bite, she looked at her mother as she sat down and started cutting up her own food. “You said I’m the last to reach…I guess Dad isn’t joining us today?”

Sighing, Marge shook her head. “Unfortunately, no. He had to stay super late at work last night so he really needs the rest. And Bart, I’ve told you about blasting your music so early in the morning, you need to be more considerate towards your father.” Bart resisted the urge to roll his eyes as Marge started with the nagging. “Sorry mom, didn’t realize Homer was still here. He’s usually out the house by now.”

The Simpson boy wasn’t joking; Homer usually left the house by six o’clock in the morning to make his way to the Springfield Nuclear Power Plant. The only reason why Homer even was able to get up that early and function was thanks to his position as Vice President of the plant. About three years ago, Mr. Burns had suffered a massive stroke but unlike his past medical issues, this one left him unable to use his entire left side, forcing him to sell his plant to whoever could take on his position immediately. A man by the name of John Stoolwell came forward to purchase the plant, effectively ending the reign of Charles Montgomery Burns as he retired with his money to be confined to his mansion. With the resignation of Burns, his assistant Smithers quit right away in order to provide 24/7 care to his boss.

With the position of assistant being open, many employees hesitated to take it at first as they weren’t aware what type of man Stoolwell was. To them, anyone who would buy the plant from Burns had to be just as or ten times worse than the billionaire. One day, the entire workplace was called to a meeting to introduce their new boss, much to everyone’s fear. A short yet stocky man in a navy three-piece suit walked out in front with a giant grin under his salt-and-pepper mustache before introducing himself as John Stoolwell before expressing how happy he was to turn this place around and make sure that everyone started enjoying their job again. Within a few days, he won over nearly every worker, minus the ones who preferred Burns’ old ways; he made sure to let them know that they could find another job. In need of money and curious about his new boss, Homer had Marge help him write a resume before going up to Stoolwell’s office and handing in his credentials. After spending a few minutes silently reading over the papers, he looked up at Homer with a blank face. Bracing himself for admonishment at thinking he could hold such a position, Homer was shocked when his boss had asked him when he could start. After blubbering out that he could start right away, he had asked why he hired him without hesitation. Stoolwell gave his employee a wide smile before explaining that because he was the first to take initiative, he had potential for the position.

And so with that, Homer began his training to become Vice President. It wasn’t easy at first; being set in his ways for almost twenty years meant that it took a while before he could fully grasp the foreign concepts on how to help run a nuclear power plant. But Mr. Stoolwell was patient and did his best to find a teaching method that the Simpson man picked up on easily, leading to a more hard-working and honest man.

The only problem with the new workload was that it required Homer to be gone from the house for hours, leaving at six and getting home anywhere from six to eight, depending on how busy the day was. There were days were Homer stumbled in after ten, not with the scent of alcohol lingering but with the look of exhaustion on his face. He only had time to heat up some leftovers and trudge upstairs to sleep before waking up early and doing it all over again.

Last night was one of those nights, shown through the absence of the Simpson patriarch at the breakfast table.

Marge sighed before taking another bite of breakfast. “Just please try to see if he’s home before you do that, okay?” After Bart nodded, the rest of the family chatted about what they were looking forward to for the day and what they weren’t looking forward to.

Maggie had made it clear with a pout on her face that she wasn’t happy about her outfit for her first day back. The youngest Simpson had grown into a tomboyish girl, preferring to run around and play soccer versus sitting inside and playing with Malibu Stacy dolls. To her, a blue t-shirt and black pants were her preference, not the frilly blue dress her mother had to practically force her into. Marge had to bargain with the young girl to dress up for the first day only and then she could go back to her usual outfits after that.

To the amusement of the family, Maggie refused to get rid of her signature bow. When asked why, she shrugged and said that it gave her character before she went off to go jump in mud puddles.

Soon enough, the honking of a school bus sounded from outside as Marge started clearing out the empty plates and glasses.

“Oh, there’s your buses!” The blue-haired woman grabbed Maggie’s lunch box and handed it to the young girl before reaching into her purse and pulling out two twenty-dollar bills for Bart and Lisa, handing it to the teens. “Now, this should cover the two of you for the next week or two, just let me know when you two need more.”

“Will do, Mom. See ya!” Giving another kiss on the cheek, Bart grabbed his green backpack before running towards the front door. “Bye mom!” Lisa gave her mother a hug and slid her purple backpack onto her shoulders, following her brother closely. “Goodbye mom! See you later!” Maggie wrapped her tiny arms around Marge’s waist before sliding on her orange backpack and running after her siblings.

Marge gave her respective goodbyes to her children, watching as they left the kitchen before hearing the front door shut. Sighing deeply, she looked up to the ceiling, wishing that she heard footsteps to signify that her husband was awake. After a few moments of silence, she gave up and started to roll up the sleeves of her dark green cardigan, washing the dishes in the sink.

‘Looks like yet another long, quiet day.’

~•~•~•~

After watching to make sure Maggie got on her bus, the teens waved to her as she waved through the window of her seat, hoping that she enjoyed her first day as a third-grader. They turned toward the street as their own bus pulled up, the doors opening to reveal one of the last people they expected to be driving.

“Otto?!”

“Hey dudes! Guess who’s back to driving the bus again?”

Otto had obtained a DUI the last school year after driving a school bus down the highway, high off of angel dust and claiming that centipedes were crawling all over his skin and that the only way to keep them off was to do 85 in a 55 zone. His license had been revoked and the school district had fired him, only to appease the parents who claimed he was a danger to their children. Either the school became desperate for drivers or Otto had re-obtained his license. The teenagers figured that it was the former; the school was just that damn cheap.

“Otto, you’re back? I thought your license got suspended.”

“It was, Bartman but I got a hook-up that got me a new one for only fifteen bucks! Now hop on dudes, we gotta haul ass and get some more kids so I hope you can hold your breakfast!” Lisa grimaced at the thought of half-digested cereal being thrown up by some other kid.

Bart turned to her and gave her a reassuring smile. "Relax Lise. Just get a seat in the back and you won't have to worry about being covered with husky sick." She scowled. "Gee, thanks for the advice, Bart."

Chuckling at his sister, Bart motioned her to walk on first before following behind. Spotting an acquaintance of his a few seats down, he called out to them as he plopped next to them, giving them a fist bump as they caught up with each other. To Lisa’s delight, a seat towards the middle was empty and she quickly took the open space. As they drove off, Lisa relaxed against the ripped green seat and sighed while looking out the window, watching the houses roll by.

‘Alright high school, let’s see what you’ve got in store for me.’

~•~•~•~

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	2. With Friends Like These

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

"They are seriously trying too hard."

Bart stared with a bewildered look on his face while his sister gave an exasperated gaze to the large sign on the brown-bricked building.

' _ _New Springfield High School'__

"If they honestly think putting 'new' in front of the original name is going to get them more students, then the school board must be licking toads", vented Lisa.

Bart turned and looked at the other buses that pulled in front of the school. "Well, it must be working because it seems like we have a bunch of fresh meat." The younger Simpson shook her head and pulled her brother towards the steps. "Let's just pray to Buddha there won't be any crowded classrooms or synthetic meat left for lunch."

Bart cackled at the thought of trying a couple of tricks out on some new kids. He may have straightened up, but he could still be a bit of a hell-raiser when he knew he could get away with it.

The two siblings walked into the school and were greeted with the burst of pine-scented air and nonstop chatter. New Springfield High School (which was abbreviated by everyone to NSHS) looked somewhat like Springfield Elementary except it was cleaner, had undented lockers and enough room for a couple of extra bathrooms and chemistry labs (courtesy of Martin Prince, class president). Signs were hung up on the walls listing the homerooms for the students.

They studied the sheets of paper until they found their names listed, one with 213 and the other with 407.

Before the duo walked off to their respective rooms, Lisa turned to Bart and roughly placed her hands on his shoulders. "Bart, we'll be apart for seven hours or more. If I hear anything from anyone about a 'blonde sundae', I swear, I will make sure you get-"

The taller blond cut her off by grabbing her and giving her a noogie, which only made her frustrated. "Lise, I won't say anything alright? If I slip anything out by accident, I'll let you tie me upside down from the flag pole with Spice Girls on full blast 'kay?" Bart chuckled and let her go; grinning even wider when he saw the pout she had on her face from seeing her mussed up hair. Lisa brushed her hair down and started down the hallway, calling back, "Thanks for giving me a new idea on how to torture you when you screw up!" His smile faded as he saw the devilish smirk on her face before she turned back around.

'Nice going Bart, you just set your own death sentence.'

~•~•~•~

After walking and turning corners for almost three minutes, Lisa finally found her homeroom. It was almost fully packed except for the delinquents who didn't give a damn if they were late for the first day. 'Things never change.'

Finding a seat was always tricky for the young girl. If she tried to ask to borrow a chair, a sharp glare would be received. If she tried to sit near someone, her chair would be dragged from the desk. And tripping was just an everyday thing for her.

Tapping a boy's shoulder, he turned and looked at her with a slightly surprised look. "Um, excuse me...c-can I borrow that chair next to you?" asked Lisa with a nervous voice. "Oh sure, here." The boy dragged the chair over to give to her.

"Thank you." "No prob", he replied with a small smile.

Lisa flushed slightly and walked away with the chair. Being given a chair without a sneer or nasty attitude was like finding out she got accepted into Yale. As she was about to move to the back corner, she spotted a pouting redhead and a blonde with ridiculously-large heels sitting near the window. Smiling, she nearly ran over to the two girls who looked like they were in a playful yet heated argument.

"And that's why they should build a boutique here!"

"But Alex, the school's not going to build something that only you would use!"

"DMY Allie, I'll just bring some of my old friends from Hawthorne Heights."

Allison gave a frustrated sigh and continued on. "Look, if they were going to build a boutique here, then it would officially be campus property. So if anyone who is a student at another school or not part of the school tried to shop here, then that would officially be trespassing. In conclusion, you would be putting your friends in trouble for no reason!" Alex crossed her arms and stuck her lip out, pretending to be mad. "Geez, talk about being a wet blanket, Taylor."

"Yeah Allison, you suck the fun out of everything more than me."

The two girls jumped up and gave the Simpson girl a bone-crushing hug. Alex grinned at her friend, baring her perfect teeth. "Lisa, how are you? Have you lost some weight?" The blonde rolled her eyes and gave Alex a play punch in the arm.

"Yes Ms. Fitness Instructor, I followed your stupid diet to get you to shut up for once." The young fashionista mocked a gasp and gave her a distressed look. Allison giggled at her friend's dramatic reaction. "Yeah Alex, you do tend to run your gap until you get what you want."

Alex widened her hazel eyes and stamped her feet like a toddler. "Oh my god, I can't believe my own friends are against me! I might as well die!" The giggling trio turned into a laughing riot until the teacher came in.

"Alright everyone, get your butt in a chair!" Everyone sat down and immediately became quiet, including the now red-faced girls.

'Heh, I don't think this year is going to be so bad!'

~•~•~•~

Seeing as how most of the new kids were seniors, everyone had to go to the cafeteria. There were too many of them for the classrooms, leaving the teachers to see which kids would have to be stuck in the gym for the day. Bart scanned the large room to look for some familiar faces and empty seats. Spotting a boy with blue hair fiddling with his inhaler, he walked over and smacked him on the back.

"Hey Milhouse, still got weak air bags?" The young boy coughed loudly and fixed his thick red glasses.

"Bart, quit doing that! You know I can't breathe well in the first place!" The blond rolled his eyes and took a seat next to his friend. "Milly, Milly, Milly. If you didn't want me to smack you, speak up next time!"

The two teens stopped their arguing as a tall young man with ragged brown hair stood in front of them, looking at them with narrowed eyes. "Hey dorks, I suggest you keep it down or you'll be even more eyesores for the teachers."

Bart simply rolled his eyes and spoke up. "Yeah, like I really give a damn about those arrogant bastards and their lackeys. Besides Nelson, you of all people shouldn't be scolding me." Nelson's glare turned into a look of frustration as he glanced to where a group of teachers were talking.

"Trust me, this is the last thing I want to do, but friggin' Melbaum will get on my ass if I don't do… _ _voluntary__  work", he finished with a grimace.

Bart simply shrugged. "Hey man, you gotta do what you gotta do." A few minutes later, everyone was lining up to go into their homeroom. Milhouse and Bart were in the same class as well as Nelson, but he was asked by their principal to monitor the halls.

"Hey Bart, do you think if I dyed my hair black, Lisa would go out with me?" asked Milhouse. The Simpson boy simply sighed and gave his friend a light shove up the stairs.

"I'm going to say it for the sixty-third time man. It ain't gonna happen."

~•~•~•~

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	3. Welcome Back

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

Wringing my hands together, I looked at the multicolored buildings as our old blue Camry drove down the one-way road. Things had really changed in seven years. The only thing that really stayed the same was the townspeople's attitude, especially towards me. I can't really blame them for acting that way.

What I did was despicable and just thinking about it made me want hurt myself.

"Hon, are you alright?"

A strong yet caring voice interrupted my thoughts and I turned to the source. "Yeah dad, I'm just thinking a little about school," I lied. He smiled, wrinkling his face up more. "Don't worry sweetheart, I'm sure you'll be fine. If you don't feel comfortable there, I could just send you back to boarding school."

I grimaced and fully turned towards my dad. "I said that I was nervous about this school, not that I miss St. Tesla's, honestly." He simply laughed and grinned even more. I couldn't help but smile back as well.

Despite what he does for his everyday job, my father was actually a caring man. His slightly graying black hair and dull brown eyes may have added to his cold demeanor, but hey, what the hell do people know?

My thoughts stopped immediately as I felt the car jerk to a stop. "Well, we're here."

I looked out the window to see a large brown building with a rather noticeable sign on top. It read 'New Springfield High School' in dull gold letters. 'Well, at least something here is worth noticing.'

As I stepped out of the car, I heard my dad quickly call out. "Hon, are you sure you'll be fine? I could just call and reschedule your first day-" "Dad, Dad! I swear I'm alright. Don't freak out on me. Besides…I'm getting older and everyday I'm just going to have to face the music and not block it out."

He simply smiled and reached over to pat my hand. "You've really made a change for the better. It makes me proud to think that seven years away from this town turned you into a shining example of the perfect daughter."

My heart lurched at his unknowingly rude statement. If he hated this town so much, why didn't he just have us move years ago? I wouldn't have to be putting up with all this crap then. Springfield wasn't really what caused me to be a complete witch, but I dared not to tell my religious father the real reason why.

Forcing a smile onto my face, I responded. "Well, I guess I better go." "Take care then." He then drove away leaving behind a clanking echo and a cloud of exhaust fumes.

Sighing, I forced my feet to move towards the stairs of the brick building. Seeing the interior for the first time, I had the look of a starving dog after seeing a piece of steak. It was considerably different than the plush interior of St. Tesla's. The walls were smooth, green concrete instead of the expensive cream-colored wallpaper I was used to seeing every day and the floor covered not with velvet red carpet, but light blue tiles. Another sight that I missed was metal lockers, small water fountains, and normal fluorescent lighting instead of glass chandeliers.

I got a couple of stares as I walked along the hallway and up the stairs to my assigned class. They were a mixture of shock, hate, and mostly wariness. I guess people still remember my face despite my somewhat different appearance.

Avoiding eye contact with every person that walked by, I managed to make it to the room listed on my schedule. Finding the room was the last thing I wanted to do, having everyone's steely gaze on me was the last thing I wanted to see. My heart just knows that's what will happen.

' _ _Room 407'__

Twisting my now hip-length black hair nervously, I decided to finally face my fears. Sighing, I reached for the cold, metal doorknob and twisted.

~•~•~•~

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	4. Hope It Gives You Hell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

'God, they think that just because we're seniors we have to be on the fourth floor.'

Forcing myself to lift my foot once again, I finally reached the designated floor. Despite having a toned body and light backpack, going up three flights of stairs wasn't exactly a walk in the park. Looking over at Milhouse, I could see him slightly sweating and fishing around in his bag for his inhaler.

'Geez, you'd think he would've manned up a bit by now.' Smacking him on his back, I enjoyed small humor as he nearly dropped his inhaler.

"Come on Milhouse! If you can fall off cliffs, survive from allergies and get away from dog attacks, surely you can make it up some stairs!"

My blue- haired friend glared at me as he stopped on the gray steps.

"Well look who's talking, jackhole. I guess that body's only useful for being a chick magnet, huh?" My eyes became wide as dinner plates from his smirk and comment.

'Ooh, you just opened yourself up there, Van Houten.'

I let out my breath and lifted my hand, resting it over my heart. "Why Milhouse, I had no idea you felt that way about me! I guess that whole Lisa thing was a ruse, eh?"

"Er-"

I grabbed his arm playfully. "Oh, this is going to be __faaaabulous__!" Man, was I good at impressions. "Honey, you must tell me __everything and anything__! We can go down to the village, buy some scones, ogle the A&F catalogues, and get drunk off of fuzzy navels!"

Milhouse looked disgusted by my little outburst and pushed me away hard. "Come on Bart, don't get fruity on me. You wanna do that? Go to Smithers, that should be fun."

We couldn't hold in our excitement as we burst out into laughter, sounding like a couple of hyenas. Of course people were staring at us, but did we give a damn?

"SIMPSON! VAN HOUTEN!"

Had that person's voice been any louder, we surely would've fallen to our deaths. Both of us jumped and gripped onto the rails for dear life. I didn't even need to look up to know who that raspy voice belonged to.

"What is it, Melbaum? Is your hearing aid too loud?" I drawled. Milhouse grabbed my arm and hissed at me. "Bart!"

The man snorted. "You know Simpson. Of the years you've been here, my life has been a living hell. Now I understand what Seymour was talking about. Poor guy."

Ah, old Skinny boy. I wonder how he's doing nowadays. The last time I saw him was in my last year of elementary school. My well-thought out plan of filling his car with mayo, nearly burning his documents and theft of toy soldiers sent him to the loony bin for good. The guilt from my prank carried on my shoulders back then along with a heavy grounding sentence, courtesy of Homer and Marge. Luckily, Mrs. Krabappel managed to save him. Yes, you remember her right? My old flirt of a teacher? Well, nowadays you can call her Mrs. Edna Skinner. She gave him a visit one day and in what must have been for the sixth time, he quietly proposed to her in a last desperate attempt. To the shock of everyone, she accepted with a straight face. They got married two months after; the time between in which she found out they would be having a kid. Ever since then, they've moved out of Springfield and are living who knows where. To be honest, I kind of miss them. They looked like saints compared to the current teachers.

I came back to the present and looked up at the judgmental face of the self-righteous principal standing above us.

"Well, I would love to stick around Mel _ _bum__ , but we have a class to attend to. Or would you rather be stuck with us for the rest of the day?" I couldn't help but to give him a wide grin. It seemed to work as Melbaum's face turned a lovely shade of beet red and imaginary steam came out of his ears.

Milhouse grabbed my arm again, harder this time. "Bart, have you officially gone off your rocker?! Melbaum's really pissed now!"

Oh please, I've seen worse. The furious man turned to us with a stern look on his face, yet his cheeks were still flushed. "I'm warning you Simpson. It might be your last year here at New Springfield High School, but be forewarned that we've started a new system this year." He straightened up and composed himself. "Surely you gentlemen know about permanent records?" he asked us.

I turned to Milhouse and mirrored his confused look. "Yeah, what about them?" Where is he going with this?

Melbaum folded his arms behind his back, attempting to make himself look more authoritative. "Permanent records carry on throughout your entire school career, from pre-K to college. It takes note of every detention, suspension, and misdemeanor you've committed during class hours." He carried on while walking down the steps toward us, stopping on the step in front of us. "The school board decided that it would be in my- I mean- __our__  best interest to add a penalty to students with a terrible record, i.e. you and Mr. Van Houten here. We can't have a bunch of miscreants taking all the scholarships, now can we?" The chuckle that came out of his mouth along with his arrogant grin riled me up.

I gazed at my watch impatiently. "Just spit it out already, old man." "Ah yes, I'm sure a detailed explanation would be wasted on you two." Asshole. Melbaum knew that my weakness was my short fuse and the wick was running extremely short right now.

A firm hand rested on my shoulder and I looked up to see Milhouse, giving me a stern gaze. The look told me to relax and save it for another day _ _.__ I let out a deep breath and nodded at him, thankful for his presence. Melbaum cleared his throat and continued his speech. "I will forget the interruption and continue." Oh sure, it's not like we have a class to get to.

"As I was saying, students who have the maximum number of strikes on their record will be put on the 'special watch' list."

Milhouse spoke up quietly, "W-well, what's the maximum number of strikes you can get?"

"About 10-15, depends on the severity of the act. And if you have way more than that, then you get put on the 'extra special' list." I could hear my friend tense and swallow the lump in his throat. I'll admit, I was nervous too, but I didn't want to give him the satisfaction of seeing my unease.

"What are the consequences? They can't be that bad, right?"

__RIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGGGG._ _

The two of us jumped at the late bell, watching as people scrambled to get their asses to homeroom. "Oh gentleman, I'm terribly sorry, but it is class time. You should get a move on. You wouldn't want to start off the school year badly, would you?" Melbaum walked off in his high manner down the hall and called back to us. "Have an excellent first day!"

I looked down at my watch.

Ugh.

Only 7:47 and already I had a bad feeling in my stomach.

~•~•~•~

With Milhouse in tow, we made our way to our homeroom. "Hey Bart." I stopped once again and looked at him. "Yeah?" He fidgeted with his bag strap, covered with crude Sharpie doodles.

"About what Melbaum said…" I rolled my eyes and placed my hand on his shoulder. "C'mon man, forget about what that douche said. Maybe he was trying to bluff us, y'know, scare us a little?" The best I could do was bluff Milhouse, and even myself, in hopes of reassurance.

The blue-haired boy just twisted his strap tighter in his shaking hands. Typical, neurotic Milly. "Let's just get to class, alright?" He finally looked up at me. "O-okay..."

We kept walking down the nearly empty hall until we reached Room 407. I opened the door and expected to hear a shrill voice screech at us for being late. "Well, well, have we got some more familiar students or am I just seeing things?" I looked at the man leaning against the desk, grinning at us with straight, white teeth.

Un-freaking-believable.

"Mr.….Mr. Seppel, is that you?"

The man scratched his shaggy brown hair and chuckled. "Well, if you know anybody else named Jarod Marcus Seppel, I demand to sue them for identity theft!" The entire class laughed in good humor at his joke. Now I couldn't suppress my grin. I must've looked like the Cheshire cat right now. Mr. Seppel straightened up and walked over to shake my hand.

"It's nice to see you again, Bart. You too, Milhouse." Oh right, Milhouse is behind me. He looked as equally shocked, yet ecstatic to see one of our old teachers from middle school. He stuttered, "Oh s-sorry, we're late Mr. Seppel. We were having a... _ _friendly__  chat with the principal."

He waved his hand at the excuse and smiled. "You don't even need to excuse yourselves. Now, why don't you two take a seat and we can get class started, huh?"

We quickly took our seats in the third row, right next to each other.

Mr. Seppel walked back to his desk and resumed his leaning position. He scanned the classroom with his dark eyes and nodded. "Ah, I remember you kids. Is it just coincidence that I have the same students from seventh grade or was something rigged during the summer?" We all shared a smirk. Everybody expected to have Mrs. Weskits for the entire school year, so we gathered together one hot day in July and had somebody sneak in and hack one of the counselors' computers to change the class arrangement. Nobody wanted that crazy witch to have a moment of peace. But now that we have Mr. Seppel, it seems that all the trouble was worth it.

He saw our looks of mischief and shook his head. "Haven't changed at all, eh?"

Jaffee, a boy with shaved red hair raised his hand. "Hey Mr. Seppel, what have you been doing all this time?"

The brunet sat on the desk and replied to the question. "Well, if I tell you what I've been up to, I'll have to start from the beginning, won't I? Oh and by the way, call me Jarod, none of that formality crap. " Everyone murmured their agreement and readied their ears for a long story.

"I was born in the capital of Canada in Ottawa to Iren and Pamela Seppel. I lived there along with my scamp of a brother, George. My childhood consisted of having to study hard, just to keep my parents happy and graduate with flying colors. High school was a bad time for me, what with peer pressure and drugs surrounding me. It was like every friend I had suddenly started getting high and wanted to see how many girls they could bang in a week. During my senior year, I was so stressed and irritated that I finally turned to marijuana and other illegal substances."

The class and I were generally shocked at the trouble he had when he was our age and how off-handedly he mentioned it. Jarod chuckled and stretched his arms behind him. "Worst mistake of my life. I barely managed to graduate high school and go to college, but my freshman year was horrible. Halfway through the semester, they kicked me out for finding my drugs stuffed away under my mattress. My folks were steaming when the school called them, so I couldn't bear to face them. Instead, I came to America, hoping to make something of my failure."

Sherri timidly raised her hand. "Is that why you showed up in Springfield?"

He nodded. "I guess you could say that. I spent about eight years in various towns, teaching and working odd jobs. Then I heard about a small town named Springfield, but they weren't positive. Still, I came here and managed to get hired."

A squeaky voice burst from the front row. "Hey, wait a minute!" We all averted our gaze to Wendell, sickly and pale as ever. "You never said that you went back to college. Does that mean…?"

Jarod became serious. "Yes, I taught classes without a degree. That's why I couldn't stay in one place for too long. People would've gotten suspicious." He switched to a happier expression. "But don't worry; now I'm a certified school teacher. After I left Springfield, I went to Regent University in Virginia and got my major. Took me a while but it finally happened, all thanks to the lady in my life."

Chelsea waved her hand frantically, causing her blonde curls to bounce wildly. "Who is she?"

Jarod laughed and walked to her desk. "Now, now, last time I checked, this was school, no? So why don't we save the questions for another day?" Chelsea turned red and smiled nervously at him.

"Alright everybody! Grab your World Studies textbook and turn to page 27! Read up to page 50!"

Everyone, including me, groaned, remembering exactly why Mr. Seppel was still a teacher. Once business had to be done, he made sure it was carried out.

I read various ramblings about the Mayan civilization, trying to remember some of it. I needed-no, __wanted__ to graduate from high school if it was the last thing I did. Before I knew it, I reached the end of the section and closed my book. Some people were already done and sat around, twiddling their thumbs, carving messages in to their desks or talking to each other. I leaned back in my seat, folding my arms behind my head. I closed my eyes, feeling ease take me over.

'So far, so good.'

The sound of the door opening brought me back to reality. I thought it was a teacher here to deliver something to Mr. Seppel. Boy was I wrong. A girl, tall and slender, stood in the doorway, tugging at her long raven hair with one hand and holding a crumpled schedule in the other. 'What a fox.'

"Hello miss. Can I help you?" She handed him her schedule quickly.

Mr. Seppel squinted at the crushed paper, trying to make something of it. "Ah yes, you're definitely in the right room. A little late, aren't you?"

Every other student stared at the new girl, examining her automatically. The girl blushed at the attention directed toward her.

"I-I'm sorry. I came from another state last night. I woke up a little too late."

'Whoa. Why does her voice sound familiar?' I'm getting feelings, but they weren't good ones.

"Relax; I'm just joking with you. Go ahead and take a seat there Ms…" He continued to squint at the schedule trying to make sense of the mess. "I'm sorry, I can't read this. You'll have to give me your name." She jumped as the color drained from her face. 'Man, is she jumpy or what?'

"Wh-what?"

"I need your name so I know who you are and to mark you as present."

She took a deep breath and stared straight at him.

"My…my name is...Jessica Lovejoy..."

I dropped my pencil, my mouth open wide.

'Oh dear God. Why the hell is she back?!'

My stomach twisted into knots, an ice ball formed in my throat and my face burned.

"Thank you, you can take your seat now. There's an empty one right behind Adrian." He pointed to the boy in glasses who was sweating profusely. I wondered if he felt the same as I did. Maybe he was afraid of becoming one of her victims. Jessica shuffled to her seat, keeping her gaze to the floor. Every single pair of eyes was on her, scrutinizing, hateful, and curious. I turned back to the front, unable to look at her any longer.

I hated her so much.

Yet…I was also scared of her. She was like a swan. Beautiful to look at, but always vicious and mean, never hesitating to hurt you.

If I wasn't in class right now, I definitely would've gone up to her and given her hell for showing her face around here.

"If you've finished the section, answer questions 1-3 in your notebook." Mr. Seppel's voice cut through everybody's frantic whispers. All I could do was take a deep breath and answer my own three questions.

Why is Jessica here?

Why is she so quiet?

What the hell am I going to do now?

~•~•~•~

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	5. Go Back to the Past

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

Switching the scene over to Old Springfield Elementary, the children's first day was not as dramatic or fast-paced, as evident by the excited shouts and the warm welcomes.

It was nearly noon, meaning that it was almost time to dismiss the kids for recess. Teachers kept an eye on their students as they drew, colored, and got to know each other before the bell rang throughout the building, startling a few of the kindergarteners into crying fits. As they were calmed down, the rest of the children ran outside to the playground, eager to get back to the activities they enjoyed during the summer.

Maggie Simpson was one of them.

As she stepped out into the fresh air, she glanced around at all the familiar and new faces. So far, she really liked third grade. It was basically the same as second grade; she couldn't see what the big deal that Bart made about it was. He even tried to give her the answers for the future tests and quizzes, but she refused, saying that Mom and Dad would be livid if they found out. It wasn't a big deal for her, anyways. She wasn't as smart as Lisa, but she knew enough to get by with average grades.

"Maggie, you dope, over here!"

Maggie gasped and looked around frantically for the source of the familiar voice. "Gerald?!"

"Oy!" She shrieked as a thick unibrow came directly in front of her vision. "Gosh, I told you not to scare me like that, idiot!" The boy laughed at her frightened face and patted her head. "But it's always fun to see you nearly pee yourself! Heh, sorry Mags. What's up?"

"Other than having to see your ugly mug, not much." "Oh wow, I was going to say that I missed you, but I guess I'll take it back."

Maggie couldn't help but giggle at his mock expression of hurt. This was how they normally interacted, due to being enemies at first. They hated each other since they were born up until first grade when Gerald stole her favorite juice box and a pack of cookies her mom had packed for her. The Simpson girl tackled him and ended up getting into a huge brawl with the boy, which had to be broken up by about three teachers. Of course their little fight ended with the two of them getting time out for recess for the rest of the week, leaving them stuck inside with each other and a teacher. On the third day, Gerald came in with an extra pack of cookies and a juice box and gave it to her as an apology. She could still remember the bashful look on his face when he mumbled that she hit good for a girl. In return, she slapped him on the arm playfully and told him to sit next to her so they could share the cookies. Since then, they've been the best of friends.

Maggie pulled him into a hug and giggled. "You know I'm just messing with you, Gerry." "I know Mags, I know. Hey, have you seen Katrina?" The girl frowned in response.

"No, not yet. Let's look for her!" The two looked around the playground, searching for the third member of their little trio. They kept this up until Gerald shouted, "There she is!" He pointed to the giant oak tree near the groundskeeper's shed where a small, mousy-looking girl was sitting.

They ran over to her at top speed, shouting her name. Katrina looked up and smiled softly at them, happy to see her friends again. "Hey guys."

Maggie and Gerald sat down next to her on the grass. "What are you doing sitting here all by yourself?" queried Gerald. "Yeah, we thought you weren't here at all, we haven't seen you all day!"

Katrina shrugged and stared off, presumably into space, as she muttered. "I just felt like it." Gerald and Maggie gave each other a puzzled look, wondering what was with their friend's offhanded response. But out of the corner of her eye, the Simpson girl caught a flash of bright pink by the monkey bars, which conveniently happened to be where Katrina was looking.

The pink turned out to belong to the tank top of a girl the same age as them, chatting with her friends and flipping her hair often. "Did Audrina make you?" The quiet girl swallowed hard and looked at her friend, nodding hesitantly. Maggie sighed and glared at the now cackling girl in pink.

Audrina was Katrina's older twin sister. You could simply look at the two and tell that they were polar opposites. Katrina preferred to wear long sweaters and pants while Audrina favored tank tops and miniskirts. Katrina had medium-length brown hair, tied back by a bow; Audrina grew her hair out to her waist and came in with a new style every day. Katrina usually kept a timid look on her face while Audrina's face exuberated sass and confidence. But with opposites came conflict. The older sibling usually teased and tormented her younger sister, in and out of school, for being as she liked to put it, 'a complete loser with no friends'. This was part of the reason for her quiet demeanor, which infuriated Maggie to no end. Ever since they became friends, she vowed to keep her protected from her sister's harsh words, along with the help of Gerald, of course.

The blonde pulled her into a tight hug. "Hey, don't worry about her. You've got us, we'll keep you safe." Gerald jumped on them and joined the hug. "Yeah! We'll teach her not to mess with our Kitty Kat!" The use of his nickname for her brought a small giggle out of the brunette. "Thanks guys, I can always count on you two."

"Hey guys!"

The trio looked up to see a boy with shaggy red hair run over, holding a rubber ball in his small hands. Maggie's little heart started beating like crazy and her face heated up as he came closer.

Tomas.

The boy that she had a huge crush on.

The boy that she thought was absolutely perfect.

The boy that she wrote stories about in her diary.

Gerald smiled and waved. "Hey Tom, what's up?"

"We're playing some kickball, you guys wanna join?" "Sure! Mags, Kat, you coming?" Katrina shook her head. "I'm not really good with sports." Tomas looked at her and smiled. "You could be the ball-getter, you won't have to do anything hard." This seemed to work as she smiled and agreed to his offer. He turned his gaze to the blushing blonde. "What about you, Mags?"

"O-oh! Well, um…I could try! My dad says I can kick pretty hard!" blurted the Simpson girl.

The redhead grinned. "Great! Let's go guys!"

So the group rushed off to join the game, Maggie glad that she was able to play with the boy she adored so much.

'Third grade, you're awesome.'

~•~•~•~

Back in NSHS, the hallways were filled with sophomores making their way to the auditorium for an assembly. Lisa was in the middle of the crowd, huddled next to Allison and Alex.

"Kind of early for an assembly, huh?" asked Alex.

The other two nodded in agreement. "Can't remember ever having an assembly on the first day of school; and at 11:30, no less!" Allison shrugged and made sure not to step on anyone's heels. "They must have a good reason, you know they wouldn't waste their time and money on something trivial."

Alex rolled her eyes. "You're right, this school district is too cheap to do that." Lisa sighed and avoided stepping on a sheet of paper. "Let's hope this won't take too long, I'd like to actually learn something in class."

Following the crowd, the girls walked into the auditorium and looked for the first available three seats together. The platinum blonde pointed to a group of chairs. "Ooh, there's a set!" Alex ran down the aisle in her platform shoes and planted her bottom in one of the chairs, much to the dismay of a boy coming from the other side. "Hey Alex, I was going for that!" She glared up at him. "There's only one of you and three of us. I see a seat up front with your name on it, next to Cosine. Goodbye Rex." The boy huffed and walked off towards the front.

The other two sat down next to their friend, attempting to get comfortable in the plastic chairs and failing. Chatter filled the large room until the sharp sound of feedback cut through, effectively silencing everyone.

"Attention! Can I have everyone's- __screech."__ The sharp noise was met with cries of irritation and swears.

Principal Melbaum fiddled with the microphone. "This stupid thing- Ah! Attention! There we go." A smile plastered onto his face. "Hello sophomores and welcome. I hope you will enjoy your second year of being in our wonderful school." Snickers could subtly be heard throughout the crowd.

"I apologize for pulling you out of your classes, but the staff and I have gathered you all for an assembly that could be beneficial to your future. Before you know it, you will all be graduating and going to college. During college, you may have to get a job to make ends' meet and pay for your tuition and fees. Maybe you won't have to then, but eventually, you will be thrust into a career in order to make money and survive. Are we pressuring you to get one now? No. Are we trying to prepare you? Why yes, with a little something called an internship."

By now, students were looking at each other and muttering in confusion.

"So you all know, an internship is any official or formal program used to provide practical experience for beginners in an occupation or profession. In other words, you are being given the opportunity to train and see what a certain occupation is like before you choose it as your career choice."

His explanation was starting to make sense to the teens, whose mutters lowered down.

"Without further ado, I'd like to introduce some of the local businesses who have volunteered to offer internships to all of you."

Lisa tuned out of the introductions, thinking about her future. She was pretty sure she was going to college after high school. At the rate she was going, she would be able to grab nearly every scholarship there was to offer and go on a free ride through, hopefully, Yale University. The last thing she wanted to do was depend on her parents' money, even if they insisted. It was clear that they were going to have to pay to help Bart through college, due to his inability to grab more than a couple of scholarships. Even with his job at the Android's Dungeon, it wouldn't have been enough to even pay for one year's tuition.

This led the Simpson girl to question herself. 'Should I get an internship? I can't always assume that things will go how I want, so I should probably have a back-up plan…' She decided to tune back in to hear the important information that was being thrown out.

She couldn't have tuned in at the worst time.

"Hey y'all, my name is Luke Stetson and I'm here to talk to you guys about the Lazy I Ranch."

Lisa's jaw dropped as she felt her heart stop and her stomach twist at the name.

'Luke? __Luke?!__ ' Unpleasant memories started flooding Lisa's head.

Going to the Lazy I Ranch in the past was the family's way of getting away from the annoyingly popular song that Homer had made. It was Bart's suggestion, but Lisa couldn't have thought of a better place to go to for there, she met a junior wrangler by the name of Luke Stetson. She adored how he was environmental and sophisticated compared to the stereotypical cowboys at the ranch. As a result of that, she gained a crush on him. Unfortunately, a mishap resulted in Lisa mistaking his sister for his girlfriend and in her jealous state, she sent the poor girl in the wrong direction and nearly got her killed. Bart helped her save the girl, but Lisa fessed up to Luke on her misdeed and in return, got dumped by him harshly. It hurt her bad, but she felt that she deserved it for what she did. She decided to take that lesson and hold it in order to keep from repeating her mistake, but she never imagined that the same boy would waltz back into her life years later.

Applause filled the auditorium as Luke finished his presentation. He stepped back in line with the other volunteers as Principal Melbaum stepped forward to the microphone. "Thank you Mr. Stetson, and thank you to the rest of the volunteers for coming to our school today to give these student job opportunities. Now students, we have fifteen minutes until the bell rings. In this time, the volunteers are going to be handing out flyers and information about their businesses on the stage. Feel free to pick one up and have them answer any questions you may have. Thank you for your time."

Once the microphone was turned off, the chatter from before returned as kids fled to the stage or sat in their chairs talking to each other. Lisa was still reeling while Alex and Allison spoke to each other.

"Wow, this was pretty fetch of Melbaum to do! Free internships? Cha-ching!"

"Alex, you do know that we don't get paid for these, right?"

The blonde stared at her friend in shock. "What?!"

"Well, actually, it depends on the company's policy…"

"So I'll just ask them who pays the most, no biggie." Allison scowled at her in annoyance. "You're supposed to be working for experience Alex, not solely for the money. It's not like you need any, your family is rich!" The Whitney girl pouted and sighed. "Okay, okay, I'll listen to your goody-two shoes wisdom and go for the "experience"." Her statement was emphasized by making quote marks in the air with her fingers.

Allison rolled her eyes and turned to Lisa, only to notice her crestfallen expression. "Lise, you okay? You don't look so good." The Simpson girl looked up in surprise, shaking her head quickly.

Alex leaned over the redhead and whispered to her friend. "Is it that time? I've got some tampons and Aleve if you need any." "Alex!" "Oh hush, it's a valid question."

Lisa swallowed and looked them in the eyes. "I just…feel a little nauseous, that's all. It'll pass, don't worry." 'As long as I don't see him for the rest of the day…or the rest of my life.'

~•~•~•~

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	6. Stay Out of My Future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

It was probably the best period ever in the history of high school.

Lunch time.

Once the bell rang, students grabbed their things and rushed out of their classes to head to the cafeteria or for the daring ones, to sneak off of school grounds to grab actual food. As for the students who weren't hungry, they scattered throughout the school grounds to hang out with their friends, make out with their respective boyfriends/girlfriends, or cause mischief out of boredom.

Lisa walked towards the cafeteria by herself, having told her friends to go ahead without her. She would have been with them had it not been for Mr. Ernkoz, who stopped her after class to express his gratitude for her being in his class. Turns out her reputation for being one of the smartest kids ever in the Springfield school district spread to the high school teachers and many were vying for a chance to teach the young genius. Lisa was flattered, but she managed to convince the teachers to treat her like she was a normal student. Getting targeted by your peers for being a teacher's pet wasn't exactly pleasant.

When she walked into the cafeteria, the smell of tater tots and pizza hit her in the face while the sound of noisy chatter filled her ears. Nearly every table was filled with kids who were scanning the room and calling their friends over once they found them. The blonde searched for a head of platinum blonde hair sitting next to a head of red hair. After a few seconds, she managed to spot her friends, who were conveniently facing her and having a conversation.

"Allison! Alex!"

The girls looked up at the sound of her yell and waved to their friend. Lisa pointed to one of the empty seats across from them and in return, got a thumbs up from the both of them. 'Alright, they're saving a seat for me, guess I better get my lunch.'

After getting on the line and standing for about three minutes, she reached the lunch lady. She didn't even bother to glance at Lisa, droning out the sentence that she must have said nearly a hundred times already.

"What'll it be, hon?"

"Um…do you have any vegetarian options? All I see is pepperoni pizza, burgers and hot dogs."

"What you see is what you get. Either get two orders of tater tots or tater tots and a tuna salad sandwich." Lisa wrinkled her nose in annoyance and sighed. 'Things haven't changed at all.'

"Tater tots and a sandwich please."

The lunch lady gave Lisa her tray and started serving the guy behind her. "Hello, can I have one of everything, please?" rang a thick German accent.

The Simpson girl grabbed a carton of 2% milk and a bowl of grapes before paying for her lunch and walking back out into the open space. She made a beeline towards Allison and Alex, now joined by a group of girls, one with light red hair, one with a blonde ponytail, and the other with her brunette hair in two pigtail braids. The blonde spotted Lisa and grinned at her.

"Hey Lise!" She removed her purple backpack that was laying in the seat reserved for Lisa. "Sorry, wanted to make sure no one took your seat." The Simpson girl smiled and sat down with her tray. "Thanks Becky, I appreciate it."

The six girls at the table ate their lunch and chatted with each other about what they did over the summer.

"Nina, I love that hair color on you! You look really good as a brunette. But why didn't you let your hair down, show it off a bit?" gushed Alex. Nina tugged her braids slightly and gave her cat-like grin at the Whitney girl.

"Sorry Alex, can't ditch the braids, they're my trademark." The blonde girl in a blue sweater leaned over behind Lisa and tugged one of the trademark braids. "Yeah, if she gets rid of them, then I can't pull them anymore!"

"Ow, Becky!" Nina scowled and batted her hand away. "You know I hate it when you do that!"

Becky cackled and took a bite of her burger. "If you hate when I do it, then why don't you get me back?"

The brunette rolled her eyes. "I'm not evil like you, thank you."

Lisa giggled at their banter and looked in front of her to her other friend. "Sophie, how was your summer? How was New York?"

Sophie smiled and put down her fork. "It was amazing! When you look past the air pollution and garbage, it's pretty incredible. Lots of stores, lots of people, lots of landmarks. Best vacation ever." she finished, with a dreamy smile.

"Did you see any cute guys?" asked Alex. A collective groan came from the other girls at her question. It wasn't a surprise to hear that question from the fashionista, half of her daily thoughts consisted of boys and how to snag the cutest of the bunch. Sophie shrugged in response and meekly shoveled a forkful of mac and cheese into her mouth.

"Aw shoot." Alex looked past the girl stuffing her face to the redhead sitting next to her. "What about you, Alli? Did you do anything exciting this summer?"

Allison put down her sandwich and looked up in thought. "Um…we went to Washington, D.C…. I won another scholarship… my hamster had babies-"

"You canoodled with Martin." Allison spit her apple juice out, narrowly missing Nina and Lisa.

"Wh-what?!" Becky smirked at the redhead's flustered expression. "Don't lie Allison!" The blonde held up her closed fist.

"Let's see: you have a boyfriend-" One finger extended.

"He's older and can drive-" Two fingers.

"You had three months of free time." Three fingers.

"Which means, you both had ample time to sneak off to some abandoned parking lot and make out and/or shag, what normal couple wouldn't do that, especially during the summer?"

The Taylor girl gave her friend a fierce glare, but it was downsized by the vibrant blush on her cheeks. "We wouldn't, __Rebecca__. We're not constantly on each other like every other hormone-addled teenage couple in this school, we have some dignity. Besides, Martin and I didn't really get to see each other too much this summer, he was busy with work and visiting colleges." Allison shrugged as if it wasn't a big deal, but Lisa could see the sadness in her best friend's eyes.

Nina pulled her headphones off and gawked at the redhead. "Wait, you and Martin Prince really are together?" Allison nodded. "Holy shit, I thought it was a rumor..." murmured the brunette before shaking her head and putting her headphones back on, bobbing her head to some rock music.

Sophie gave a disapproving glance to the blonde. "Becky, ease off."

Lisa elbowed Becky. "Yeah Beck, leave her be. Besides, speaking of 'canoodling', you were the one who tried to hit on my brother every time you came to my house in hopes of "him asking you out and us getting married and having seven boys, all as handsome and strapping as their father!"."

At her impersonation, the rest of the table, sans Becky, roared with laughter. "Lisa, that was perfect!" "Wow, you're __still__  hung up on Bart? C'mon Becky!"

Becky slammed her fists on the table in annoyance, her face twisted in a scowl and cheeks tinged pink. "Shut up, I have desires and urges that may or may not have to be fulfilled by a certain guy!" Alex looked at the ranting blonde sarcastically.

"Becky sweetie, what desires? You're as much of a virgin as the rest of us." "And how much is that, __Alexandra__?"

Nina piped in without looking up from her iPod. "Super-mega-ultra-can-never-get-out-of-the-friend- zone virgin."

All the girls sighed wistfully and shook their heads before eating the rest of their lunch in silence. Lisa smiled to herself at the amount of banter they had in the span of ten minutes. 'My friends are crazy as heck, but Buddha, I missed them. Speaking of Bart…' She scanned the room, looking for a head of spiky blonde hair, before stopping at a table against the opposite wall where her older brother was sitting with his usual group of friends.

'Wonder how his day is going…'

~•~•~•~

Bart lost count of how many times he had spaced out during his friends' conversation. At this point, they were getting a bit miffed and continued without him, much to his delight. They were talking about how their day went so far and it was the last thing Bart wanted to talk about out loud.

He still couldn't believe his eyes when Jessica Lovejoy, of all people, walked into his classroom that morning. For a few seconds, he thought he had fallen asleep in class and was having a nightmare. Boy, how he wished that were true.

When he tuned back in, he heard an exclamation from Milhouse. "So guys, did you know that Jessica Lovejoy is back?!"

Milk was spit out and jaws were dropped from the other boys at the table.

"Say what?!"

"You're shitting me."

"Van Houten, if I find out you're lying, I'm gonna wail on you!"

Milhouse squeaked at Nelson's threat and sputtered out. "B-but it's true, I saw her! Bart's in the same class as me, he saw her too! Tell them, Bart!" At the mention of his name, the blonde whipped his head around and glared at his best friend.

'Fuck you, Milhouse.'

The blue-haired boy's eyes widened. "Hey, what did I do?" 'Wait, did I say that out loud?'

"Sorry Milhouse, it's just…yeah, I saw her. And that's it." He went back to finishing his first slice of pizza, signaling the end of the conversation, much to the others' dismay.

One of the boys scratched his head in confusion, mussing up his gray hair. "That's it? You didn't talk to her?" Bart shook his head. "No, Richard." The boy sitting next to him rolled his eyes. "Can you blame the guy?" "Oh shut up Lewis, I had to ask."

Nelson frowned at the Simpson boy, wondering why he was in such a pissy mood. "Simpson, why are you getting so bent out of shape over that chick, she's old news!" queried the Muntz boy. "She screwed you over, you got her back, end of story." "Nelson, __I__ didn't get her back, Lisa did. God knows I wasn't smart enough then to try and call her out. And no, it's not the end of the story, because I feel like I need to show her just how much trouble she caused me."

Milhouse spoke up with a mouthful of tater tots. "Show her? You mean like prank her or something?" For a few seconds, Bart was tempted. He could feel the hell-raiser in him coming back out. "Actually…"

Out of nowhere, a grape flew over and hit him in the temple. "Ow! Milhouse, what the hell?"

"Bart, you can't do anything crazy, remember what Melbaum said? Make up enough strikes and you'll get put on the 'special watch' list!" Bart gave him a death glare, causing the blue-haired boy to shrink back in fear. "I heard what he said, I'm not deaf. Besides, why the hell would I believe anything that old coot says? He's been out to get me ever since I started ninth grade and put all the science teachers' frogs into his office." The three other boys chuckled at the memory of the event. "He just wants to keep me from graduating, that's all. But he's not gonna scare me with some stupid 'special watch' list!"

Richard decided to interject. "But what if it you get expelled?"

If looks could kill, he would have been dead from the fierce stares of everyone else sans Bart, whose eyes widened in realization. 'Aw man, I forgot about that.'

"Bart, ignore him…Bart?" Milhouse snapped his fingers in front of his best friend's face, but to no avail. "Bart, snap out of it!"

"Way to go, dingus." Nelson reached over and swatted the gray-haired boy on the back of the head.

Lewis glared at his best friend. "You know, we might as well just start calling you Dick now."

"Hey! I didn't mean to make him upset, I just-"

A hushed whisper from Nelson cut off his sentence. "Devil chick, incoming."

All five boys straightened up in their seats and looked down at their trays, feigning interest, as said 'devil chick' passed their table. Bart kept his eyes down as she walked by, refusing to make any sort of eye contact with her. Once she was gone, they all let out a sigh of relief, glad that nothing happened.

But they didn't notice the longing glance that Jessica gave to the Simpson boy.

~•~•~•~

Sighing heavily, she twirled some spaghetti onto her fork, failing to get more than a couple of noodles on. Jessica gazed around the cafeteria at all the animated and chattering students, happy to be surrounded by their friends once again. Her jaw tightened as she clenched her fingers, nearly snapping the plastic fork in half.

She really wasn't sure whether to envy them or hate them. Of course, that evil part of her brain was saying to hate them all, hate them for giving her nasty looks wherever she stepped, hate them for whispering things behind her back, hate them for being people. But she held back her urges by taking a deep breath.

Jessica had made a promise to herself and her parents to start her first day off right, but the positive and timid attitude she had come in with had nearly dwindled from all of the teasing and ostracizing she was facing.

And to make matters worse, the boy that she was eager to see couldn't even look in her direction. When she came into class, he looked away once she said her name out loud. When class ended, he grabbed his things as fast as he could and ran like a bat out of hell. When she walked past his table, not only him, but all of his friends tensed up and stared at the table like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

All so Bart wouldn't have to look at her.

Jessica lifted the spaghetti to her mouth with shaking hands, making a mental note to visit the nurse after lunch so she could take her medication.

~•~•~•~

__RIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGGGG._ _

Lisa's head shot up as the sound of the bell filled the classroom. "Okay everyone, don't forget to get your internet consent forms filled out, we're starting work tomorrow!"

At the teacher's dismissal, kids sprang out of their seats and headed out to the hallway, chatting excitedly as they made their ways to their respective lockers. Lisa picked up her notebook and pencil and made her way out, only to be stopped by the teacher. "Lisa, wait!" She turned towards the woman. "I'm sorry to keep you from leaving, but I just wanted to say how I'm honored to have you in my class. I heard from some of my fellow English teachers at the middle and elementary school that you're a pretty good writer."

Lisa smiled bashfully and shook her head. "Thank you Mrs. Delvecchio, but I think I'm decent enough, not quite on Edgar Allen Poe's level." "Haha, yes, no one can quite reach his level! Have a good day, dear." "You too!"

She walked out of the room and into the hall, making her way towards her locker a few doors down. When she reached, she quickly put in her combination and packed her bag with whatever she needed. 'Thank Buddha that they're giving us the same lockers as last year.'

"Hey Lisa!"

As she closed her locker, Lisa heard a voice call out to her. Turning around, she spotted Allison and Alex standing. "Hey guys, ready to head home?" Alex shrugged. "Actually, that's why we're here. My mom just called and said I have an appointment in an hour, so she's picking me up." Lisa frowned.

"Oh…what about you, Allison?"

The redhead gave her an apologetic look. "Sorry Lise, Mr. Beighlie wants Group A Band to stay behind and help him set up the chorus room for tomorrow's practice."

Lisa pouted at them. "Aw guys, that means I'll be all alone on the bus." "Sorry! Don't worry, tomorrow we'll be here for sure."

" _ _Alex Whitney, please report to the lobby for dismissal."__

Alex glanced at the PA system. "Ooh, my mom's here already? Gosh, you'd think she was going for her own appointment." She gave both girls a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Bye girls, DMY!"

"DMY back to you, Whitney!"

Alex walked down the stairs, the sound of her heels against the concrete mixing in with the student traffic. Once she was out of sight, Allison checked her watch. "I should probably head to the chorus room early so we can finish faster. See ya, Lise." "Bye Alli!" Lisa hugged her friend, waving goodbye as she headed down the same stairs.

The Simpson girl made her way down the hall and to the other set of stairs, walking down until she reached the back entrance hall, where students stood waiting for their buses to arrive. Lisa opted to stand outside with some of the other kids, taking in the sunshine and fresh air. She decided to lean against the wall next to the door, predicting that the buses wouldn't get here for another five minutes.

'Springfield School District does not know the meaning of on time, apparently.'

Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a young man walking through the door and out to one of the cars in the visitors' section of the parking lot. Assuming it was a teacher, Lisa paid no mind.

Once he reached his car, he set down the box he was carrying and pulled a cowboy hat out of it, fitting it back onto his light blond hair. At that point, Lisa pushed herself off the wall and stood upright. 'Luke!' Lisa's brain kicked into overdrive as four familiar girls by the name of Jealousy, Honesty, Conscience, and Libido conversed in her head.

****Jealousy:** ** __It's him! I can't believe he came to my school of all places! Who does he think he is?!_ _

****Honesty:** ** __Well, it was for the whole school, not you._ _

****Jealousy:****   _ _So?! Ugh, I still remember how badly he dumped me, I felt like an idiot.__

****Conscience:** ** __Remember girls, we deserved that. We should be put that behind us and take the lesson learned. If anything, to be polite, we should go up to him and at least say hi._ _

****Libido:** ** __Yeah, say hi and then make out with him! Ooh, he got even cuter, I didn't think it was possible! Purrow!_ _

****Conscience:** ** __Quiet libido!_ _

****Libido:** ** __Just you wait 'til my next birthday Conscience, I'm gonna raise hell like never before! Binge and purge, baby!_ _

****Conscience:** ** __Oh for goodness sake. Just go say hi to him!_ _

At the shout from the biggest girl in her mind, Lisa was brought back to reality.

'Should I really go say hi? I mean, it would be nice to catch up a little bit, even if we might never see each other again…' Looking up, she saw that he had packed his stuff away and was preparing to leave. 'Oh Buddha, give me strength.'

Lisa ran down the steps and over to his car. "U-um, excuse me…" To her chagrin, her voice came out shakily. Somehow he managed to hear and turned around, flashing a pearly grin at the blonde.

"Hello there missy, can I help you?"

Lisa couldn't help the slight flutter in her stomach and the warmth in her cheeks as she looked at the handsome man. "Hi. I, um, was there at the assembly today...Mr. Stetson, right?" Luke chuckled and tilted the brim of his hat. "You can call me Luke, darling, Mr. Stetson is my pop's name."

She smiled slightly, gaining a bit more confidence. 'He hasn't noticed me yet…not sure if that's good or bad.'

"Well, I thought you gave a great presentation, Luke…but I have another reason for being here." Lisa closed her eyes and took a deep breath before opening them back up. "Do you…remember me?"

The older man blinked repeatedly before frowning in thought, taking in her appearance, looking for anything familiar. After a few minutes, he shook his head. "I'm sorry hon, but could you tell me your name? It might help me."

"It's…Lisa Simpson."

As soon as she mentioned her name, a look of shock and recognition came over Luke's face. "Lisa? From years ago at the ranch?" She nodded. "Wow…how are you doing?"

"Um, I'm…peachy. How about you?"

"Good, good…"

"How…how's your sister?" He blinked surprise at the mention of his sister. "Oh, she, uh, she graduated high school last year…she went down to North Carolina for college."

"That's neat."

The Simpson girl would have hid in her shell if she had one. Her confidence had ebbed away and was now replaced by unease and awkwardness. Luckily, she heard the loud engines of the school buses pulling up. 'Oh yes!'

"Um…" She motioned to the buses. "I have to go now…"

"Ah, yeah, I should get going too…" Luke scratched the back of his neck nervously. "So, um, bye Lisa."

"B-bye Luke." 'Way to stutter, Lisa Marie.'

They waved to each other and got into their separate vehicles. Lisa found an empty seat in the front and plopped onto it, resting her head against the warm window, groaning in embarrassment at the bumbling reunion.

~•~•~•~

A rickety yellow bus came to a stop in front of the Simpsons' residence. Lisa ran out of its door as she yelled goodbye to Otto. She walked up to the front door and opened it, knowing that her mom kept the door unlocked until nighttime.

She called out to her mom. "I'm home!"

"In the kitchen, dear!"

The blonde walked through the living room and into the kitchen, spotting her mom frosting cupcakes. Marge looked up and smiled warmly at her daughter. "Hello honey, how was school today?"

"Not bad, but the teachers are already trying to shove job opportunities on us. We had an assembly about it today."

"Well that was generous of them to do. You might roll your eyes at it now, but these opportunities will benefit you in the future!" Lisa chuckled. "I know mom, I know. You made cupcakes?"

Marge answered as she refilled the pastry bag with blue icing. "Yep, your sister asked for them last night and I promised that they'd be ready by the time she came home from school. By the way, where's your brother?"

Lisa shrugged. "Probably went to hang out with Milhouse or Nelson, didn't see him after lunch."

"Hrm, I really wish he would give me a notice if he's not going to come straight home."

The young girl patted her shoulder gently. "Relax mom, he's almost 18, I'm sure he can handle himself." Marge sighed, not quite convinced. "I guess you're right…do you want me to make a snack for you, honey?"

"No thanks mom. I'm actually gonna go take a nap, okay? Oh, and I have permission slips you need to sign."

Marge nodded, not looking up from the cupcakes she was working on. "Alright, leave them on the coffee table and I'll get them. I'll wake you up when dinner's ready!"

Lisa headed out of the kitchen and towards the stairs, climbing each step until she reached her room. Throwing her bag to the floor, she closed her door. To her delight, Snowball was curled up at the foot of her bed. "Hey girl, did you miss me?" The cat looked up and purred in delight, jumping off and trotting over to her owner, rubbing against her leg affectionately.

Lisa giggled and sat on her bed before curling up on her side, patting the space next to her. "Come here, let's take a little nap." Snowball complied and curled back into her ball next to the Simpson girl.

She closed her eyes and relaxed her body, preparing for sleep. 'One day down, one hundred and seventy-nine more to go.'

~•~•~•~

****Reviews, reviews, reviews!** **


	7. Breaking News

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

****Three weeks later…** **

__*sounds of shuffling feet*_ _

__A whisper. "3…2…1…go."_ _

…

__*lights brighten to reveal Kent Brockman sitting at his desk*_ _

" _ _Good evening folks, my name is Kent Brockman. We have breaking news for you, exclusive from the Springfield Police Department. It appears that a convict by the name of Jack Crowley has escaped Springfield Penitentiary late last night."__

" _ _Investigations show that he escaped through a man-made tunnel that was carved with a metal spoon. After he exited the tunnel, he ran to Donny's Discount Gas where he held up a customer and stole their car, successfully driving away. The carjacking was reported immediately after and connected to the case early this morning."__

" _ _Police advise the public to stay vigilant, as they cite Crowley as a dangerous criminal who may be armed. Keep your doors locked and your windows closed, do not walk alone, and call the police if you have clues to his whereabouts. Here is his picture."__

__*a box to the side depicts the mugshot of a man in his 30s with dark brown hair and an aloof expression*_ _

" _ _If you see this man, do not, I repeat, DO NOT approach him. Phone the police immediately and stay away. Good night."__

__*light dims as Law and Order: Elevator Inspectors Unit comes back on*_ _

~•~•~•~

Unfortunately for the Simpsons, they were eating out and enjoying themselves, unable to hear the sudden news.

~•~•~•~

****Uh oh** ** ****, Jack's back! If nobody remembers, he was in 'Pokey Mom'. He was that prison guy that Marge took in because he was a talented artist. Skinner asked him to paint a mural for the school and yelled at him when he used his own idea. So Jack had to follow Skinner's design and repaint it, much to the displeasure of everybody else. AND SKINNER STILL YELLED AT HIM.** **

****So Jack got pissed and burnt the mural down, causing a fire, and lied to Marge that he didn't do it. She tried to help him escape, but he ended up being an idiot and burning Skinner's car in front of everyone, laughing like** ** ****the psycho that he is** ** ****. Long story short, he got arrested and was never seen again…until now.** **

****Reviews are always appreciated!** **


	8. Complicated

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

Before anyone realized, the beginning of fall was starting to cloud Springfield like a blanket. The temperatures dropped, forcing early risers and night walkers to bring a jacket or sweater along lest they suffer from the wind chill. The leaves were also turning and threatening to pile onto the streets and grassy lawns, ready to be crushed and blown away until spring arrived. On this late September day, many chose to rest on the lawn of 742 Evergreen Terrace, much to the dismay of the middle-aged man standing on the driveway.

 

Homer grumbled to himself as he surveyed the yard, noting how the leaves just seemed to keep piling up, no matter how much he raked or blew them into Flanders’ yard. He had even asked Bart to take care of them yesterday since it was the weekend but the boy had to run to work and cover a call out. It wasn’t that Homer was upset that the once-notable slacker was earning an honest living; in fact, it was one of the few times he was proud that his son had taken an initiative to better his life without being told to a thousand times. There was just so much work for him to do now that he had a huge responsibility himself at the power plant.

 

More money meant more work but more money led to a happier family and home life.

 

“Hi-diddly-ho, Homer!”

 

Homer winced.

 

Well, __almost__  happier home life.

 

“Mm…what is it, Flanders?”

 

The Simpsons patriarch turned to face the friendly and pious man peeking over the fence with a grin placed under his graying mustache.

 

“Say, this weather changed mighty fast, eh? The boys and I went out to church yesterday morning and hoo boy, we had to run back in and grab our jackets! But we ended up being about five minutes early for church though, guess that’s what we get for not checking the weather, huh?”

 

Homer resisted the urge to roll his eyes, placing his hands on his hips. “Yeah, this weather is sneaky…look Flanders, I’ve gotta get these stupid leaves out of here before it gets dark. What do you need?”

 

Ned adjusted his glasses with a sheepish look before going back to his friendly grin. “Ah, apologies, neighbor-ino. Well, I know you usually reject my invites but there’s this new buffet that opened downtown and one of the folks at the church managed to get a private room booked. It’s only going to be us adults and we had room so we wanted to extend an invite to you and the missus!”

 

Before Ned had even finished his sentence, Homer was ready to reject the invite yet again until he heard the word ‘buffet’. The Simpson man had shed some pounds over the years but that didn’t mean he could turn away an offer like that. Portion control existed for a reason.

 

He reached up and rubbed his chin. “Hm, sounds tempting…I’m sure it’s on a busy day though…”  
  
”Nonsense, we were planning to go this Saturday, around six o’clock! You don’t even have to get there on the dot but it’d be a smart choice.”

 

‘Buffet and not having to show up on time? This was starting to sound better and better.’

 

Homer managed to keep a poker face and shrugged at his neighbor. “Sounds intriguing, Ned. I can’t promise it’ll happen but I’ll bring it up to Marge tonight.”

 

An even wider grin stretched across Ned’s face, emphasizing the wrinkles around his eyes. “Well, that’s a darn-diddly better answer than no! Just get back to me with your answer before Wednesday, alrighty?”  
  
”Sure thing, Flanders. Now, can you let me do my yard work?” The neighbor nodded quickly and left with a jovial farewell, leaving the Simpson man alone on his yard.

 

Homer sighed before walking back towards his garage to start on his work. His animosity and jealousy for the Christian man had waned a bit over the years and he managed to find himself being more civil with Flanders; that didn’t mean that he could handle him all the time. What led to this near-vitriolic friendship was a violent spat the two had gotten into about three years ago at a church potluck; Homer had gotten overzealous with the food and when Ned had reprimanded him for the fifth time, the former had slipped an insult about his mother to the other and ended up with a fist to the face. After a brawl that knocked over the food table, a near-banning from Reverend Lovejoy and a long apology to each other and the rest of the congregation that were witnesses, Homer and Ned managed to put their differences aside and make an effort to get along with each other. If anyone had told Homer Jay Simpson that he would be contemplating a dinner with Ned Flanders back then, he would have bellowed out a laugh in their face.

 

Grabbing his rake, Homer started gathering each stray leaf. Time passed as he made little mountains of dead leaves until a red station wagon pulled up into the driveway. Looking up, he smiled as he spotted a tower of blue hair coming out of the driver’s seat.  
  
”Hey Marge! Got the groceries?”  
  
Marge nodded before running to the trunk, opening it and starting to pick up the paper bags with both arms. “Sure did! Guess what I’ll be making for dinner tonight?”  
  
Homer pondered over her question as he ran to the garage door to open it for her. “Hmm…beats me, what have you got in mind?”  
  
Setting the first round of bags on the kitchen table, she ran back out and gave her husband a playful grin.   
  
”Some lucky man is going to be having pork chops tonight!”  
  
Homer gave his signature ‘woo-hoo’ before planting a kiss on his wife’s cheek. “Marge, you are too good to be true sometimes…are you sure you’re not an alien?”

 

The blue-haired woman rolled her eyes and giggled. “Who knows? Maybe I’m hiding an antenna under my hair. Homie, do you think you could help me with the rest of the groceries? They had way too many good deals today, I went a little overboard.”

 

Giving a nod, Homer ran to the trunk and started assisting his wife with the bags, listening to her warnings about being careful with the eggs in one bag and the heavy orange juice in another. Remembering the conversation from earlier, he started to inform Marge about the invite.

~•~•~•~

Throwing the butt of their cigarette out of the window, the figure pulled another Laramie stick out of its carton and sparked a fire with their lighter, inhaling the poison once it was lit. Turning in the seat of their red Ford Mustang, they zeroed in on the light brown house down the block.  
  
That fat man from years ago was raking some leaves in the yard, separating them into neat piles.  
  
’Guess he’s not so fat anymore, would’ve thought he’d be bedridden by now.’

 

Snickering to themselves, they took another drag as they watched the repeated motions of the man.  
  
Rake. Sort. Rake. Sort. Wipe brow. Swear. Rake.

 

The figure growled to themselves, ready to turn the ignition back on and hightail it out of the neighborhood. What gave them pause was the sight of a familiar red station wagon rolling into the driveway. What nearly made them hop out of the car was the blue-haired woman coming out of said vehicle. There was no mistaking that tower of cyan locks and the green dress that modestly hugged her curves. Hands clenching the wheel in anticipation, the figure swallowed down their sudden glee and waited until the couple disappeared inside the house before bringing the engine to life. Peeling out of the neighborhood, they gave a malicious smirk as the house disappeared in the rear view mirror.

 

‘Found ya, Marge. I’ll be seeing you __very__  soon.’

~•~•~•~

If senior year was this grueling, Bart dreaded what college would throw onto his shoulders. It was only a month into his final year and he could already feel the urge to rip out his hair and jump out the window. The teachers were ruthless with assignments, the career advisers were pushy with job and internship offers and the college reps that visited were making their schools sound like THE one that wouldn’t let you end up with no job and major debt after four years of learning.

 

At this point, Bart was ready to say ‘screw it’ and just worry about going to community college for some basic credits. It seemed like all he could afford anyways, the Android’s Dungeon was only giving him eight dollars an hour. Comic Book Guy was a cheapskate and responded to Bart’s complaint about a raise with a lift of his chins and made it seem that he was lucky that he even hired a brat like him. Oh, how the Simpson boy almost wished that he suffered another heart attack. __Almost__.

 

With a ringing of the bell, Bart packed up his bag and started out the door, barely hearing the nasal of Mrs. Focker reminding them to read Chapter 12 about the Springfield-Shelbyville War. He glanced at his watch and groaned.

 

It was only fourth period. Out of nine. Ugh.

 

‘Now I have to walk all the way up the goddamn-’

 

__Thump._ _

 

Before he could finish his thought, a solid body bumped into him, nearly knocking him off his feet. Scowling, he turned towards the oaf.  
  
”Hey man, look where the hell you’re…”

 

“Sorry man, I wasn’t…”  
  
The two’s heated and apologetic words trailed off as they stared at the other. In front of Bart was a boy a few inches taller than him with dirty blond hair and an equally shocked expression.  
  
”Holy shit…Bart?”

 

The second that familiar, deep voice spoke his name, the teen launched forward and pulled the other into a bone-crushing hug while laughing.  
  
”Donny! What the hell are you doing here, man?”

 

Donny gave a laugh of his own as he patted the back of his long-lost friend before breaking the hug. “Going to school, what does it look like?”

 

Bart rolled his eyes and socked the other in the arm. “No shit, Sherlock. I mean, how’d you end up back in Springfield? It’s been over seven years and I haven’t heard anything from you!”  
  
With a slight look of discomfort, Donny glanced off to the side before scratching the back of his neck. “Well…a lot happened in that time…”  
  
”Excuse me, gentlemen.” A haughty voice chirped behind the Simpson boy’s back.

 

Turning towards the source, Bart raised an eyebrow at the skeleton of a woman glancing at the two with disapproval written on her aged face.  
  
”I suggest you two make your way towards your next classes, the final bell will be ringing soon. I’d hate for you to get in trouble again Mr. Simpson, especially since this is your friend’s first day here.”  
  
Bart rolled his eyes before speaking in a sarcastic tone. “Thanks for the concern, Ms. Deetz. You always know how to look out for your students.” Ms. Deetz grinned with pride before strutting off to her next destination.  
  
”Gee, sarcasm just rolls off of her like water, huh?” Bart snickered at Donny’s sarcastic quip, happy to know that some things hadn’t changed. Not wanting to push his luck too much with tardiness, he turned back towards his friend.  
  
”The old bat won’t care what you say to her, as long as there’s some kind of compliment in that sentence. Hey, what class do you have next?”  
  
Lifting up the crumpled green paper to his face, the other teen squinted at the words. “Uh…looks like I have Physics with Mr. Lombardi…second floor. You?”  
  
”Damn. I’ve got Calculus with Mrs. Weis on the third floor.” A light bulb went off in Bart’s head. “Wait, when’s your lunch period?”  
  
”Fifth period, you?”  
  
Grinning wide, Bart pumped a fist in the air. “Fifth period! Looks like we’ll be sitting together.” Before Donny could give an enthusiastic response back, the final bell rang loud and clear through the halls, signified by the straggling students who were booking it to their now late classes.  
  
”Damn! Look man, I’ll catch up with you later, yeah?” Holding his fist out, Donny smirked as Bart bumped his own against his before turning and sprinting towards the stairs.  
  
”Sure thing. Oh, we’re by the pole with the Puma Pride poster, Milhouse and Nelson will be there too!” Nodding in affirmation, Donny waved before running off in search of his own classroom.

 

In just a few minutes, Bart’s sour mood had taken a 180 into elation. Never in a million years would he have thought he’d run into a friend that he hadn’t heard from in so long. Their relationship had been a revolving door back then, starting off as rivals turned fast friends turned betrayer and back to friends again. Although they had promised to find each other in the future, once Donny skipped town, it was almost like he never existed. Bart had never gotten a last name from him, if he even had one, plus the sheer size of the country meant the runaway could have gone anywhere. After years of Facebook searching and phone book page turning, the young boy had given up on ever finding his friend again. The day he stopped, he just merely wished that wherever Donny was, he was happy and had a stable life for once.

 

__Thump._ _

__

“Whoa! Sorry man, didn’t see-”

 

Bart’s apology was cut short as his heart stopped once he realized who he had bumped into on the stairs.

 

‘Jessica…’

 

Said girl was looking up at him with widened eyes as if he had threatened to skin her whole family alive. “S-Sorry…”

 

For the next few seconds, neither said a word, merely taking in the each others’  presence in the empty stairwell. Bart swallowed hard as multiple emotions threatened to spill over and flood his body, nearly betraying the stoic look on his face. Since the day she had reentered his life, he did his damnedest to avoid her, taking shortcuts or ducking behind poles if there was nowhere to run. At this point, his friends were busting his balls about how far he was taking this. He understood that he was being a little spineless now, hiding from a girl when he usually was chasing after them.

 

But this wasn’t an ordinary girl; this girl was poison.

 

Giving her an offended look, he brushed past the raven-haired girl and stormed up the stairs with an excuse forming in his head for a sure to be irate teacher. At the bottom of the stairs, Jessica stared at his retreating back with a pained look, lamenting yet another day that the person she wanted to talk to the most refused to acknowledge her existence.

~•~•~•~

“Is it time to graduate already? I’m ready for that sweet, sweet college life.”

 

Lisa sighed and shook her head as Alex complained next to her. “Sadly, no. We still have about two years to go, Ms. Whitney.”

 

“Ugh! Whatevs, I guess I’ll just have to bug my cousin more for her endless college tales to hold me over for those two years.” Rolling her eyes as she said this, she gave her lips one more swipe of pink gloss in front of her locker mirror. “I still don’t get why you didn’t skip ahead, Lise. You’re a freaking genius, you should be on your way to Yale or something by now.”

 

Giving a shrug, the Simpson girl shuffled through the contents of her own locker, making sure she had what she needed for tonight’s homework. “I told you Alex, I didn’t really want to leave you guys behind and well, I don’t think mom could handle having 2/3s of her kids away from home.”

 

Alex puckered her lips before stowing away the gloss in her purse and shutting her locker. “Well, it’s not like you guys are always going to live at home, she’ll have to get over it. Besides, look how many scholarships you’ve got already, I’m sure your parents won’t have to pay a cent out of pocket!”

 

Lisa had to give it to the other blonde, she made some valid points but her mind was set years ago to stay in the grades she belonged. While the thought of being able to leave high school early was indulging, she knew that whatever progress she made in her social life at home would be erased once she went away for school. People who shared her level of intelligence would most likely see her as competition over a companion and the fact that she came from a middle-class background rather than the upper-class would make her unworthy in the eyes of those who didn’t see her as a threat.

 

To Lisa though, those weren’t too bad; being shunned was something she had plenty of practice of. What really held her back was her family. Bart had cleaned up his act a bit over the past couple of years but it was still going to be costly to get him through college. Homer had a better position at the Nuclear Power Plant but that meant the hours were longer and kept him away from home more often, sometimes even for a day or two. The money was coming in a little more but it was draining towards past debts, the mortgage and the daily necessities for the family. Marge was happy with the thought of more money but having Homer away more often was putting a slight damper on her mood. The realization that her kids were all growing up and were only less than two years away from flying the nest surely didn’t help matters either. Her parents never asked her to stay behind but she could see it in their eyes once eighth grade ended and she started looking up future universities. Once again, Lisa decided to be selfless for the sake of everyone else’s happiness.

 

Sighing, she turned to her friend. “Alex, it’s…well, it’s complicated, trust me. I-”

 

“Hey guys!”

 

Before she could finish her sentence, a familiar voice called out to them as they approached the two girls.

 

“Hey Alli! You ready to blow this popsicle stand?”

 

Allison shook her head at Alex before looking up and down the hallways with anticipation. “Actually, I have to wait for Martin. I borrowed one of his books and he needs it for class tomorrow.”

 

Lisa giggled at the blush that colored her cheeks while Alex placed her hands on her hips. “Allison, you’ve been with him for what…almost a year now? Can’t you just bring it to his house later?”

 

The redhead crossed her arms and stared down the platinum blonde with irritation. “A year and __two months__ , thank you. He lives too far for me to just bring it over to him plus you always keep us out so late when we hang out. An extra two minutes is not going to kill you, Alex.”

 

“But there’s a Vanilla Chai Latte with Extra Whipped Cream and an Espresso Shot with my name on it at Skybucks! I will __not__  let anyone come in between me and my drink, Ms. Taylor!”

 

Lisa laughed at Alex stomping her boot-clad foot to emphasize each word of her sacred beverage before resting a hand on her shoulder. “Alex, calm down, you know Jared always has a cup sitting aside for you. I’m sure Martin will be here pretty soon.”

 

Not a second later, a male voice was heard as someone joined their trio. “Hello darling, ladies.” Giving a polite greeting, Martin leant down and placed a kiss on Allison’s cheek, causing the faint red to flare into a vibrant crimson. The nerdy boy had sprung a few inches taller than them in height and filled out in the rest of his body, giving him a sturdy build with broad shoulders, although a bit of his belly was still there as gym still wasn’t his best subject. His light blue polo and khaki pants were pressed to perfection and not a single strand of strawberry blond hair escaped his parted hairstyle. He gave his girlfriend a grin full of pearly whites. “How was your day, my dear?”

 

“Oh, you know, the usual. Mr. Morrison gave us a pop quiz, Ms. Steinbrenner wants us to read more of __Wuthering Heights__  for homework. How about you?”  
  
”Ah, mundane as usual. Trigonometry is so yielding, I cannot see how everyone else is struggling with such a simple concept. Why today, someone confused sine with cosine and it took the teacher five minutes to explain the difference! I swear, some people-”

 

The senior’s rant was cut off by a loud clearing of the throat by an impatient Alex, glaring at her friend to make her accomplish her task. When she said nothing would come between her and her drink, __nothing__  was absolute. Allison stuck her tongue out at her friend before reaching into her backpack and pulling out a book.  
  
”Oh, before I forget, here’s your book back!” Handing it back to its rightful owner, she gave him a sweet smile. “Thank you for letting me borrow it, it really helped me understand the works of Albert Camus more.”

 

“Of course, darling. Thank you for returning it to me…oh, but there’s a bookmark towards the end. Did you not get to finish it? The commentary by his family and friends is quite riveting.”  
  
Allison shook her head and fiddled with her fingers. “No…actually, I stopped there on purpose.” She looked up at him under her eyelashes and shot him a bashful look. “I figured we could finish it together and discuss it when we hang out this weekend?”

 

At this, Martin’s smile dropped as he looked back and forth between her eyes and the hallway with uneasiness. “Um, actually Allison…we will have to postpone our little get-together. Princeton got back to me about my application and they wanted me to come for another interview…”  
  
Like a shadow passed over her face, Allison’s smile dropped just as quickly. “But…you already went over there for an interview last month…”  
  
”Yes but they requested a second interview. They received my SAT and ACT scores from earlier this year and wanted to discuss my possible admission in more detail. I think they just might admit me!”

 

Next to the couple, Lisa and Alex were standing there with mixed emotions at the sight that was going on. They understood his excitement at being accepted into the Ivy League school but were frustrated at how often he placed his education over the girl he asked out over a year ago.

 

The redhead looked down for a second as she mumbled. “I see…” Looking back up into Martin’s eyes, she gave a smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “Well, I guess studies always come first, huh? This __is__  pretty big for you.”  
  
Martin frowned and brushed a stray hair that escaped her headband out of her face. “Allison, I’m sorry I have to cancel on you once again but I promise that I will make it up to you. As soon as I come back, I will treat you to an exquisite dinner at Asia de Cuba, how does that sound?”  
  
”That…that will work. I do enjoy their risotto…”

 

“Splendid!” Placing a kiss on her cheek, he placed the book in his own bag before grinning. “I will keep you updated on how everything works out, my love. Have a good day, ladies!”

 

Once he turned and started walking towards the back entrance, Lisa and Alex stared at their friend, trying to decipher the look on her face as she stared off down the hall where her boyfriend disappeared.

 

“So, um…I think this calls for a Skybucks and Sushi Ko run, ladies.”

~•~•~•~

Skybucks was rampant with customers as always, listing off their orders to the sunny cashier and checking their drink labels to make sure every ingredient was in their cup. In the corner, Lisa and her friends sat at a table, choosing that spot for the privacy of the conversations that were sure to happen. A lot of fellow students frequented this place and the last thing they needed was some gossip going around the next day.

 

Taking a big sip of her beloved drink, Alex sighed as she savored the flavor before placing her cup down on the table. “Ah, now that is life!” She then straightened up and turned towards Allison with a stern look on her face. “Alright girl, we need to talk.”

 

The redhead frowned, already knowing where she was going with this, and shook her head. “Alex, what is there to talk about?”

 

“Girl, don’t BS me like that. We need to talk about your wishy washy boyfriend.”

 

“Alex.” Lisa gave the other a cautious look, telling her to watch how she used her words, even if she knew it came from a place of concern.

 

Sighing, Alex took a deep breath before speaking with a softer tone. “Allison, this has to be the thousandth time he’s canceled on you last minute. Every time you act like it’s not a big deal but we can see it in your face, ya know.” Resting a manicured hand on top of Allison’s, she gave her a worried look. “Talk to us.”

 

Following suit, Lisa spoke up after taking a sip of her green tea. “Alex is right, Allison. You can act like it’s okay but we all know it isn’t. Whatever you tell us will stay between the three of us and no one else.” Lisa gave her an equally worried look, hoping that it would help her open up.

 

Taking in the expressions on her friends’ faces, Allison broke and let out a frustrated sigh. “He’s done this so many times…he’ll be enthusiastic for us to hang out or go somewhere and then next thing you know, I’m left in the dark for him to go do his own thing. It’s so…stupid!” Scowling now, the redhead looked the others in their eyes.

 

“So why don’t you say anything to him? Let him know how he’s making you feel by canceling on you constantly.” Allison sighed at Lisa’s inquiry. “I’ve tried but every time, he says he’ll make it up to me or that I’m being over-dramatic. I guess he figures that since we’re both geniuses that I’d understand where he’s coming from, but…”

 

“But you’re not just a genius, you’re his __girlfriend__.”

 

At Alex’s heated reply, Allison looked at the irate girl’s face. “Alex…”

 

“It’s not like you went after him, __he__  was the one who asked __you__  out. He tells you all these sweet nothings and showers you with gifts and dinners but let me tell you something. It doesn’t mean jack if he’s not backing up with his promises. Actions speak louder than words, Allison.”

 

Shock painted both Allison and Lisa’s faces at their friend’s passionate response. It was almost as if she was in the relationship with how personally she took the issue. Lisa could understand why Alex was upset, hell, the Simpson girl was upset herself at how Martin was treating her friend. They all saw each other as sisters and anyone who hurt one of them was hurting all of them.

 

“Alex, Lisa…thanks, really.” Taking a deep breath before sipping her frappuccino, she set the drink down before giving each of them a serious look. “When he comes back from his trip, I’m going to sit him down and have a serious talk with him. I…I deserve to be heard.”

 

Glossy lips stretched into a smile as Alex patted the hand that hers had been resting on. “That’s the feisty Alli we know and love! You got this, girl!”

 

Lisa smiled as well and placed her hand on top of the other two. “Just be firm and let him know how you feel. If he resists, well, you know where to find us.”

 

Allison giggled at the thinly veiled threat, beaming at the other girls. “Of course, Lisa. Thanks girls.”

 

The platinum blonde gave a thumbs up before taking another swig of her latte. “Anytime, babe. Now, I think some sushi is calling our name, no?”

 

The others agreed immediately and gathered up their bags and drinks before heading out onto the sidewalk, shivering at the breeze that greeted them. It seemed like the temperature was dropping rapidly with each day that passed. After walking down a couple of blocks, the girls entered a dark gray building with the image of a smiling fish laid out on a cutting board like a pinup girl on the front, the banner beneath it housing the words ‘Sushi Ko’ in bold letters. As it wasn’t dinner time yet, the three were seated immediately in a booth and placed their usual orders, nursing their waters as they waited and chit-chatted about their lives.

 

The topic of internships came up between them, each of them begrudgingly admitting that the surprise assembly from last month made an impression on them. It seemed like the school was hellbent on getting the students to be involved anyways as the volunteers continued to visit every week. They talked to the ones who were interested and looked to persuade the ones who weren’t quite convinced yet. Unfortunately for Lisa, this meant that she had to constantly see Luke each time.

 

While she tried her best to avoid running into him, he still somehow managed to catch her eye from across the room, giving her a gentlemanly smile and a tip of his hat in her direction. Whether her heart beat from nerves or lingering feelings was something she didn’t dare to ponder over. She couldn’t lie though; a part of her was happy that he still acknowledged her. After what she did years ago to Clara, she would understand if he wanted nothing to do with her ever again. But he just seemed to brush it off as a mistake that she learned from and treated her with respect; God, he was still a gentleman after all of these years.

 

“Hello, earth to Lisa Marie!”

 

Jumping in her seat, Lisa wondered when Alex’s hand ended up waving two inches in front of her face. “What?”

 

“Lisa, what did we just say we wanted to possibly intern in?”

 

“Um…” The Simpson girl bit her lip and gave the platinum blonde a sheepish smile. “Cosmetology?”

 

“...I told you she was spacing out, Alli.” Alex gave the redhead an exasperated look while the latter shook her head. Cheeks heating up, Lisa mumbled an apology and gulped her water.

 

Allison gave the girl next to her a poke in the arm. “Just what was so intriguing that you spaced out on us while we were discussing our internships?”

 

“Well…” Lisa hesitated. While the trio had confided in each other with their not-so-proud moments before, she had never gave them the story behind Luke.

 

“Well?” pressed Alex.

 

Taking a moment to shoot a silent prayer to Buddha, Lisa squared her shoulders. “Well…you know one of the volunteers? Tall, blonde, cowboy hat?”

 

The other two took a few seconds to picture them before a light bulb went off in their heads. Allison spoke up first. “You mean Mr. Stetson who works with the Lazy I Ranch? What about him?”

 

Alex piped in next. “Ooh, Lisa, don’t tell me you’re thinking of working with him! I say you should go for it, that Southern accent is to __die__  for! Get a little Southern hospitality, if you know what I mean.”

 

Rolling her eyes as the fashionista went into one of her boy-crazy tirades, she shook her head. “No, I visited the ranch years ago. If things are still the same, then I refuse to go back there and support their animal cruelty and oppression of the local natives. Besides, Luke was the only reason I didn’t want to leave back then.”

 

“Whoa, whoa ,whoa. Back then? You mean you __knew__  him before he came to our school?” Lisa nodded and Alex’s mouth dropped open. “WTF…”

 

Allison turned in her seat to face the Simpson girl with a stern look. “Alright, Lise. Spill, there’s something you’re hiding.”

 

Before she could begin her recollection, their waiter came by to deliver their food and refill their water glasses. As hungry as the girls were, Lisa knew they wouldn’t let food stop her from telling her story. Sure enough, after the first couple of bites, Allison and Alex were out for blood. The Simpson girl took the time to explain just how the family had ended up at the ranch many years ago and how she ran into Luke and the massive crush she gained on the junior wrangler. What Lisa dreaded was telling them just how the two ended on bad terms. Once she told them how she purposely led his sister Clara, mistaken for his girlfriend at the time, towards the wrong way, she was met with looks of disappointment and shock. It took everything in her to continue the story and not crawl under the table to join the straw wrappers. She made sure to let them know that she tried to rectify her mistake by going with Bart to save Clara from certain death. After describing the rescue and the consequences she suffered from telling Luke the truth, Lisa took a deep breath and stuffed a piece of sashimi in her mouth.

 

“Wow, Lise…to think eight year-old you would be so petty…”

 

“I mean, I’m not too surprised, Alex. This is the same girl who tried to sabotage my science fair project back then…”

 

“Allison!” Lisa nudged her friend with her elbow as she burst into laughter at the scandalized look on the blonde’s face. “Just messing with you, Lisa! Seriously though, it seems like he doesn’t hold anything against you now. He’s being friendly towards you, right?”

 

“Yeah, but…”  
  
Alex swallowed her tuna maki roll and pointed her chopsticks at the Simpson girl. “But nothing, missy. Listen, you were young and dumb and that was over seven years ago. Not to say that you weren’t wrong but if he hasn’t forgiven you or gotten over it by now, I’d say he’s not worth it.”

 

Allison piped up and nodded. “I agree. Besides, exactly what are you looking for from this guy? How old is he?” At these questions, Lisa froze. She had never mentioned his age in the story, not sure as to how her friends would react. And what exactly did she want from Luke? Forgiveness? Friendship? Roman-

 

The blonde nearly shook her head in person at that last thought. Romance was impossible and out of the question with this man. He was 20. she was 15. So many things were wrong about that difference so she swallowed down those lingering feelings along with her nigiri before replying to Allison’s question.

 

“I just want his forgiveness…I want to make sure he actually accepts how sorry I am and isn’t just putting on a professional front. That’s all…besides, what do I look like going after a 20 year-old?”

 

Just as she predicted, Alex nearly spit out her water while Allison accidentally dipped her roll into too much of the soy sauce.

 

“20?!”

 

“20? Oh wow…”  
  
”Yeah…so that’s that.”

 

With the finality of her tone, the girls understood that that topic of the table was officially done. Continuing their meal with more chit-chat about lighter subjects, Lisa couldn’t help but think back to her claim of forgiveness. Forgiveness really was all she could receive from Luke; a friendship between a 15 year-old and a 20 year-old? That was just asking for Chief Wiggum to end up on your doorstep. Surely he was in college or had a full-time job, he would never have time for some 15 year-old who couldn’t drive yet or couldn't be out after ten o’clock at night.

 

Deep down in Lisa’s heart, she hoped that she could be proven wrong for once in her life.

~•~•~•~

****Reviews are welcome!** **


	9. Resist

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.

Peeking around a corner while students rushed by was not how Jessica Lovejoy planned to spend her Wednesday afternoon at school. As soon as class ended, she gathered her books and raced to her locker, packing away whatever she didn’t need and slammed it shut before running down to the first floor. When she woke up today, she had a mission in mind: find Bart Simpson and talk to him.

 

The Simpson boy was avoiding her like the plague and it was starting to work on her nerves.

 

He wouldn’t even look in her direction for more than a few seconds and hid behind poles and ducked into empty classrooms in order to not even be in the same area as her. Talk about desperate. To her delight, she found out through eavesdropping that he left a few minutes later than some of the students due to his last class being on the far end of the fourth floor. This time, she was going to lie in wait for Bart and corner him, once and for all.

 

After a few minutes passed of teens walking by, some even giving her strange looks for her suspicious position, a mop of spiky blond hair came out of the stairwell. Jessica grinned to herself in satisfaction.

 

‘Got you, Bart.’

 

Straightening up, she ran down the hall to call out to the other before he walked out of the double doors. “Bart! Wait!” Jessica could practically see his shoulders tense up from behind at the sound of her voice, stopping in his tracks. Catching up, she stood behind his tall frame, clearing her throat. “I need to talk to you…”

 

“Listen, I don’t want to-”

 

Before he could finish his protest, the raven-haired girl grabbed his forearm, noting the muscle formed underneath the yellow skin. “I don’t care about what you don’t want, Bart Simpson. You’re acting like a child and while I can understand why you’re avoiding me, I think the least you can do is face me and we can discuss this like the adults we are.”

 

Bart had half a mind to tell this girl to shove it, especially at the childish remark. However, she did have a point. He promised himself that he was going to be more mature and responsible now. He was tired of running and hiding, the least he could do is hear what she has to say, get off what’s on his chest and then go about his day.

 

Sighing in exasperation, he turned towards her and motioned her to follow him into the stairwell he emerged from. Nodding at him, Jessica released his forearm and walked behind him into the far end of the stairwell, hiding under the steps so no one could disrupt their conversation. “Alright Lovejoy, talk.” Taking a deep breath, Jessica looked him straight into his blue eyes.

 

“Okay…obviously, I’m back now. I know it’s been a long time and we didn’t leave on the best terms…but I wanted to say I’m sorry for how I acted back then. What I did was evil…it wasn’t even a prank, it was just __horrible__.” Biting her lip, she looked down for a second before speaking again. “You just saw me as a crush and I took advantage of that for my own gain. I just…” Realizing that she was rambling, she looked back into the other’s eyes. “I just hope you can forgive me for what I did to you all those years ago. Pushing you down that giant hill, making you pull the fire alarm, framing you for the collection plate theft…I’m sorry, Bart.”

 

The next few seconds were tense with silence from both parties as the minister’s daughter waited for the Simpson boy to respond to her apology. What came out of his mouth next shook her down to her core.

 

“Is that supposed to mean something to me, Lovejoy?”

 

“Wh-What? __Excuse__  me?”

 

Narrowing his eyes, Bart folded his arms over his chest. “So you do all those things to me and expect your little apology to make up for it? Did you really think I’d bend over backwards and say ‘oh Jessica, you’re so thoughtful! Jessica, you’ve turned into an angel and renounced your sinful ways!’ Do you think I’m freaking stupid?”

 

Jessica couldn’t believe this. She wasn’t naive, she didn’t expect things to go smoothly, oh no. But to have him basically mock her apology and question her integrity, that was going __way__  too far. “Bart, what the hell? I’m practically pouring my heart out to you, what more do you want?!” Her fists clenched as her green eyes narrowed. “Do you want me to get on my knees and beg for your forgiveness? The only time I ever do that is when I have to go to church and pretend that I’m praying to whatever phony God is up there, I’m __not__  doing that for you!”

 

As she snapped back at him, Bart barked out a humorless laugh and pointed a finger at her face. “You see, that’s your problem. You make it seem like you’re sorry and concerned about how I feel but you only think about yourself. That’s how it’s always been and that’s how it’s always going to be, __Jessica__.” Adjusting his backpack on his shoulders, the blonde gave her another glare before turning and speaking over his shoulder. “Maybe you should spend more time in church on your knees, God knows you of all people need it. Have a nice day.” With that last insult, Bart made his way towards the double doors, pushing them open with a little more force than necessary.

 

Left alone with the silence of the stairwell, Jessica absorbed the whirlwind that took place just now. A familiar anger twisted its way into her heart as her face screwed up with rage, her nails digging into the palms of her hands. Cursing out the Simpson boy in her head, she walked to the double doors and pushed it open with even more force, desperate to leave this place lest she do something she might regret. Students still straggled around the back lot, waiting for friends or hanging out with each other. They didn’t pay attention to the fuming girl as she stormed down the steps and started walking towards the streets to head home. Her mission was a failure and now she was scrambling to pick up the pieces through her humiliation and rage.

 

‘If that’s how you want to play, Bart Simpson, I’ll make sure you accept my apology, one way or another.’

~•~•~•~

Folding a basket of fresh laundry, Marge sat on the couch in the family room as the TV droned on in the background. The nightly news was on, filled with the usual chatter by Kent Brockman. A murder. Upcoming election. School budget cuts. Another murder. Kwik-E-Mart got robbed again.

 

Usually the blue-haired woman had company but everyone was busy doing one thing or another tonight. Bart was at work, having rushed there after coming home in a somewhat foul mood. Lisa was upstairs working on her homework and reading one of her books for AP English. Maggie had finished her work earlier in the day and chose to spend the rest of her night playing Roblox in her room. Marge grumbled to herself as she folded one of her son’s many band tees.

 

At least Homer should be home any minute now.

 

Remembering the invite by Ned for the buffet dinner this Saturday, Marge smiled a little at the thought. It had been ages since her and Homer were able to go out with friends and she was looking forward to the upcoming event. Years ago, her husband would have rather been caught dead than voluntarily hang out with the religious neighbor; now he made an effort to get along and she couldn’t be prouder of him for changing his mind. Their kids weren’t little anymore so they didn’t have to worry about babysitters unless Bart and Lisa were unable to watch Maggie. She knew how teenagers loved to go out on the weekends.

 

__“Breaking news folks, an update on the escaped convict from Springfield Penitentiary has been made public by the Springfield Police Department. We go to Chief of Police Wiggum, live in front of the department.”_ _

__

‘An escaped convict? That doesn’t sound good…’ Looking up from her laundry for a second, Marge eyed the television as Chief Wiggum’s rotund form filled the screen, backed up by his two men, Eddie and Lou.

 

__‘Chief, has there been any progress made on the escaped prisoner?’_ _

__

__‘Chief, have you found the whereabouts of this convict?’_ _

__

__‘Chief, is this escapee related to the recent Kwik-E-Mart robbing?’_ _

__

__Chief Wiggum raised a hand up to halt the questions as he scrambled to answer the ones that were shouted at him first. ‘One, yes, we have made progress on finding the prisoner. Two, we found a major clue as to his whereabouts and what he was up to until recently. Third, no, for once, this is not related to the Kwik-E-Mart robbery.’_ _

__

__Lou leaned in and whispered to Wiggum, presumably on what facts to present to the public and what to hold back. Clearing his throat, the chief began speaking again. ‘We have been asking multiple civilians around town to report any suspicious activities or sightings of Crowley. While many of those claims turned out to be false, one of them has been looked over and determined to be related to our case. Um…’ Turning to Lou, he whispered, loud enough to be heard through the mic. ‘Lou, do you, uh…remember what that claim was?’_ _

__

__Sighing, Lou nodded and motioned for the chief to step back and let him take over the conference, adjusting the mic to reach to his level. ‘A civilian who wishes to remain anonymous reported spotting a man who resembled Crowley at the Gulp ‘n’ Blow yesterday at around 11 PM. They testified that the man came out of the restaurant after purchasing dinner and drove off in a red 2003 Ford Mustang, license plate RGW-4357. This plate matches that of the civilian who was carjacked last month, his own description matching that of Crowley as well.’_ _

__

__An uproar of questions continued again from the reporters until Lou pointed out at a younger man in a tan suit and fedora to match._ _

__

__‘Sergeant, where is Crowley located at this time?’_ _

__

__‘Unfortunately, our team is still working to uncover his exact whereabouts. We have reason to believe that he is holed up in a hideout that is off the grid.’_ _

__

__Eddie tapped Lou on the shoulder before whispering in his ear, low enough to only be heard by the sergeant. ‘Officer Eddie has informed me that fliers have been distributed throughout Springfield listing details of our convict. Please notify the police if you or anyone you know spots or has information regarding Crowley. We are holding a $50,000 reward in conjunction with Springfield Penitentiary for his capture.’ Lou’s face grew more serious as he addressed everyone watching this conference._ _

__

__‘We emphasize that no one attempt to be a vigilante and approach Crowley. He is a violent and unstable man who will most likely be armed. Again,__ do not approach Crowley _ _. Contact the police immediately and keep a safe distance from him. This meeting is over. Thank you.’__

__

__Stepping away from the podium, the chatter of the reporters continued as the three officers walked back into the station._ _

__

__The live feed ended as Kent’s aging face came back onto the screen._ _

__

__‘Thank you for watching this conference, folks. We will continue to keep you all updated with any new info on the escaped prisoner.’_ _

__

Marge frowned as her eyes stayed glued to the TV, her hands in autopilot as they continued folding clothes. This sounded like serious business. The local police being unable to find criminals in a timely manner was nothing new; what concerned her was the high reward and warnings for civilians to stay safe. Another thing that bugged her was the name of the convict. She figured that he had been discussed so often that they stuck with using his last name instead of his full name. But…it sounded so familiar and she couldn’t put her finger on it…

 

‘Crowley…Crowley…darn, where have I heard that name before?’

 

__‘Before we end our nightly news, we have received details to share with the public on identifying the prisoner .’_ _

__

__Once Kent finished speaking, two pictures with text popped up in two columns on the screen._ _

__

At the sight of the prisoner’s face, Marge gasped loudly and dropped a pair of Maggie’s shorts.

 

That rugged yet handsome face. Slicked back dark brown hair. An aloof expression amplified by cold, brown eyes. The same eyes that looked into her own as he promised that he didn’t burn down the school mural.

 

Jack Crowley was the name listed underneath the picture.

 

The blue-haired woman was in too much shock to even read the next column that listed the picture and details of the car stolen by him. Resting her head in her hands, she looked down, seeing nothing but the green fabric covering her legs.

 

Jack had been an inmate at the Waterville State Prison where they held an annual prison rodeo. Homer had participated and injured his back, landing him in the infirmary where Jack was housed as well. Marge caught sight of one of the paintings hanging in the infirmary and was surprised to learn that the convict had painted it. Feeling empathetic at the talent that was locked behind bars, the Simpson woman decided to hold a painting class in order to give Jack a chance to show his skills. Thoroughly impressed, Marge fought to have him approved for parole at his next hearing; what she didn’t expect was that he would have to be in her custody.

 

Once he moved in, Marge helped him get a job at Springfield Elementary to paint them a new mural. Sadly, Skinner and Jack had constantly butted heads during the process, Skinner hating Jack’s edgier style while Jack loathed Skinner’s childish style. Not wanting to mess up his second (or third chance, he had slipped to Marge at one point), the convict sucked it up and followed Skinner’s instructions, much to the disapproval of everyone who was present at the mural reveal. The principal refused to take blame and passed it onto Jack, enraging him. Soon enough, the mural caught fire, revealing the work that Jack had painted first, winning back the crowd. With Jack nowhere to be seen, Marge searched for him and found him hiding in the playground. Assuming the worst, she figured that he set the fire but to her surprise, he gripped her shoulders and looked deep into her eyes.

 

__“Marge, look in my eyes. I swear to you, I did not do it.”_ _

__

She was a fool to believe that smooth voice. She risked her own integrity to distract the police so he could escape; instead, he took the opportunity to torch Skinner’s car, maniacal laughter ringing into the smoke-filled air. Once he was arrested and in the back of the police cruiser, Marge let him have it as he had the nerve to lie to her face again. As the car drove away, Marge hoped that would be the last time she would ever see the convict’s face again.

 

Oh, how wrong she was.

 

“Marge, I’m home!”

 

Jumping at the sound of Homer’s voice ringing from the front door, Marge straightened up and picked up the shorts she had dropped on the floor. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she managed to paint a smile on her face as her husband stepped into the room.

 

“Welcome home, Homie. How was your day?”

 

Shrugging, Homer sat down on the couch, careful not to disturb the pile of folded clothes between them. “Ah, the usual. Nuclear power plant stuff, you know?” Looking at his wife’s face, his own twisted in concern. “Marge, you alright? You look a little pale…”

 

Nodding quickly, Marge waved her hand in the air. “Yeah, yeah! I just…realized that the electric bill is due before the night is over!”

 

Letting out a ‘d’oh’, Homer slapped his forehead before rubbing it. “Damn, I knew I should have paid it off this morning before I left! I’ll take care-”

 

“No!” Stopping her husband before he could get up, she quickly pushed him back down onto the red couch as she stood up. “Homie, you’ve had a long day, let me go take care of it right now.” Seeing that the confused look was still on Homer’s face, Marge leant down and kissed his forehead. “Really, let me go do it right now. You work so hard, just sit back and relax, okay?”

 

“Okay…thanks honey.”

 

Giving a loving smile to her husband and getting one in return, Marge exited the family room with a little more speed than usual. Walking into the kitchen, she let out the breath she had been holding, shoulders sagging as the gravity of Jack’s escape weighed on her. Marge walked to the sink and stared out the window. The gray bricks of Waterville State Prison stood out to her like a sore thumb, high on the green hills of Springfield. She gripped the edge of the counter, her knuckles turning white as she tried to still her trembling fingers.

 

Why was she so nervous? It wasn’t like Jack was going to come after her and her family; he was probably just sick of prison life and decided to take matters into his own hands, however unethical they may be. Who knows, Jack Crowley might just be multiple towns over, trying to start a new life under a new name. Maybe he realized how bad he screwed up and decided to turn a new leaf, becoming the painter that he was meant to be!

 

But it didn’t matter how carried away Marge got as she made excuses in her head for the rest of the night; while she slept, dreams of Jack and his cackling permeated in her mind.

~•~•~•~

__‘Before we end our nightly news, we have received details on-’_ _

__

Cutting off the TV, Jack grumbled under his breath at just how incompetent the local police force was. Not that he wanted to be captured, his mission wasn’t complete yet. But time was drawing near and he couldn’t risk dragging out his plan any longer, lest he end up back in prison and headed for the electric chair.

 

Standing up from the recliner, he walked down to the basement to a work bench littered with photos and maps. On the wall above it was a cork board with miscellaneous pictures and sticky notes, courtesy of the convict. To his luck, the elderly couple whose house he was hiding out in consisted of a conspiracy theorist husband and a wife who was too doped up on Xanax to give a damn about his shenanigans.

 

It was a pity that he had to take care of the old coot, he had put up one hell of a fight but was no match for someone half his age and twice his muscle mass. The wife was none the wiser due to her inebriated state; while dragging out a large garbage bag, she turned to Jack with a dazed look and asked who he was; it was a miracle he could understand her slurring words. Putting on a dazzling smile, he reminded her that she was his grandson Trevor and that his mother had asked her to spend some time to take care of his grandparents. Whether she believed him or didn’t care, the old woman nodded slowly before staring at her TV again.

 

Luckily the couple didn’t have friends or frequent visitors to their house, the only ones who visited were the Meals on Wheels delivery boys. They dropped off the dinners on the front porch before speeding off in their van, not seeing the new guest picking them up before slamming the door. Thankfully the old woman didn’t require assistance to feed herself, so long as it didn’t require her near a stove, leaving Jack to his own devices.

 

Looking at his board, he took in the various images. The biggest was of the Simpson house while smaller ones listed a photo or two of Homer and the kids, leaving the house for work or school. What stood out in this collage were the multiple photos of Marge herself. The tower of blue hair stood out in each photo despite the different activities the woman was performing. Walking out her front door. Sitting in her red station wagon. Kissing her husband goodbye. Tending to their garden. Whatever move she made, Jack made sure to capture it on film.

 

Jack picked up the pad of sticky notes and began scribbling the next steps of his plan. He had decided when to pay his ‘old friend’ a visit; Saturday night was the perfect time. Most likely Marge would be home, whether by herself or with family, it didn’t matter to him. All he cared about was getting to the cyan-haired woman. If someone wanted to get in his way, he wouldn’t hesitate to erase them from the picture.

 

He hated to admit it but the Simpson woman refused to escape his thoughts ever since he was thrown back into prison. The sheer sympathy and compassion she had shown him in that short amount of time blew his mind; not even his own parents gave him that much throughout his childhood. The disappointment she expressed the day he was taken away permeated like a rain cloud over his head as he was brought through a swift trial, sentencing him to twenty-five years. His cloud lingered as he was placed with his new cellmate, some punk with a shaved head and a body covered like a canvas in tattoos who talked shit the second the cell door closed. Jack just ignored the guy day after day, going about his business with the fog in his head. Then came the day where the punk found out through yard gossip what Jack was up to before he returned to prison life.

 

Feeling bold, his cellmate got in his face after dinner one night, taunting him about being ‘soft’ and ‘playing with paint like a little girl’ and ‘getting caught like a dumbass’. However, the punk took it too far once he started talking about Marge. He sneered at the convict about how he spent all that time in a woman’s house and couldn’t even get any tail.

 

Jack couldn’t remember what happened next in those few seconds. When he came to, there were three guards pinning him down to the concrete floor with one guard checking on the punk lying on the other side of the cell, unconscious and littered with blood and bruises. That little episode earned him some time in solitary confinement and a dangerous reputation in the prison.

 

It didn’t matter. __No one__  was allowed to speak of Marge like that.

 

As the years passed, his obsession grew greater and greater. She occupied his daily thoughts. She showed up in the paintings he made. She lingered in his dreams. In these dreams, she gave him her warm smiles and held her arms out, asking him to come back. She wanted to give him another chance, wanted to set that troubled soul of his free once more, wanted to give him more than a place to sleep. The dreams always ended the same though. Before he could reach out and touch her, she started melting into a puddle, resembling the oil paints he loved to work with.

 

One day, he couldn’t take it anymore. He planned his escape and managed to sneak a metal spoon out of the kitchen one day, using the big brawl that was ensuing in the cafeteria as cover. Sneaking it back to his room, he used the utensil and spent days digging his tunnel, bit by bit. His new cellmate couldn’t care less, he was too timid and didn’t want to feel the man’s wrath by snitching on him. Jack had been on good behavior in the last couple of years, shortening the amount of times guards came to check up on him. Using this to his advantage, he managed to get about 3/4ths through, sneaking in after hours to work until one September night. That night, he bid his cellmate a farewell as he disappeared into the tunnel one last time.

 

After digging for another hour or two, Jack Crowley became a free man once more. Now he could make his dreams a reality.

 

A thump and the sound of the TV cutting off upstairs brought Jack back to the present. Looking at the clock on the wall, he swore as he saw how late it was getting. He had to pick up some important supplies in the morning in order to prepare for Saturday night. A good night’s sleep was needed for everything to go right.

 

Reaching out to one of the photos, Jack stroked Marge’s smiling face with fondness.

 

‘Marge, just you wait. I’ll show you just what you’ve been missing.’

~•~•~•~

New Springfield High School’s cafeteria was full of energy, students filing in for lunch after their long classes.

 

There were a few tables that weren’t as full as the beginning of the year. The students that usually occupied them chose to venture outside for more edible food or to sneak home and never come back for the day. The Simpson teens and their friends were an exception to this, though.

 

Bart sat at the usual spot with the gang plus Donny. Lisa sat with her usual group of friends as well. Seeing as it was Thursday, both tables were discussing everyone’s plans for the weekend. The teenagers were dying for some fun to break up the stress that was creeping up on them from school.

 

At the boys’ table, each of them were giving ideas for what to do on the upcoming weekend. So far, none of them could agree on an idea.

 

“Why don’t we go to the Googolplex? The Re-Deadening III: Revenge of Baby Button Eyes is still playing.” Richard suggested this before taking a bite of his PB&J sandwich.

 

Nelson waved his hand at him in dismissal. “Man, I saw it last week, that movie was ass!” Lewis nodded in agreement. “Yeah, all the budget went towards the special effects. They couldn’t even keep the original actors!”

 

Richard groaned in annoyance at his opposition. “Then why don’t you suggest something, geniuses?”

 

Lewis tapped his fingers on the table in thought before snapping them in the air. “What about Barney’s Bowlarama? I heard they’re having ‘Teens’ Night’ Saturday, anyone between 13-19 gets to bowl for half price.” His suggestion was met with speculation until Bart sighed and shook his head.

 

“That sounds like an idea but the last time Milhouse and I went to that, the place was packed with freshmen. We waited for almost twenty minutes and left, no one was leaving their lanes.”

 

Sighing as another plan was shot down, the boys kept thinking of suggestions to field. Donny however, having only a small bit of familiarity with the area, kept his comments to a minimum. He was settling in well with the group, it reminded him of how they got along back then before he had to leave Springfield. Although, Richard and Lewis were new faces to him and they took a bit of time to get a feel of the new kid, they quickly accepted him as one of the guys. He still had a ways to go to catch up with the rest of the group, not being able to talk to them too much outside of school. Donny’s late arrival to NSHS led to a huge workload in order for him to catch up with his peers. His parents didn’t expect straight A’s from the boy but they wanted him to do his best and graduate come June.

 

A light bulb went off in his head. Setting his Powerade down, he called out to the boys. “Hey guys, I’ve got an idea.”

 

Stopping their debate, the boys turned towards Donny, surprise etching their faces as he barely spoke since they sat down. “What’s up, Donny?”

 

“I think we should chill at one of our houses and spend the night. Y’know, shoot the shit, play video games…besides, I want to see what kind of trouble I should expect from my new friends.” As the idea sunk into their heads, Donny smirked as they all pondered.

 

Milhouse was the first to speak up. “Hey, that doesn’t sound so bad…”

 

Lewis was next. “Yeah, when’s the last time we all had a sleepover?”

 

Nelson rolled his eyes and pointed a thumb at Richard. “Not since Dick here was dating Ashley.” The gray-haired boy glared at him before grumbling. “You could’ve just said July, asshat.”

 

Before the two could start an argument, Bart jumped in. “Anyways…I think that could work out. Nice job, Donny!” The Simpson boy gave the dirty blonde a fist bump while grinning. “Any objections?” The rest of the guys shook their heads, satisfied with the suggestion. For the next few minutes, they talked about what movies and games to bring, what foods they were planning to eat and what time was best for the party to start. The next question that came up halted the excitement.

 

“Okay, now who’s house are we staying at?” Donny’s question was met with silence as they all realized they forgot to discuss an important part of the plan. The group looked at each other with uncertain looks as a few of them knew why the party couldn’t be held at their house.

 

Richard’s parents were going to be home all weekend and weren’t a fan of the company he kept, surely they wouldn’t allow the boys to spend the night. Lewis’ family had moved into an apartment a couple of years ago and didn’t have the space to accommodate everyone. Milhouse’s parents took Saturday night as an opportunity to ‘get reacquainted’ and have done so for the past seven years. Nelson, well…that was never an option from the beginning. Donny would’ve been willing to hold the get-together at his house but his parents preferred to get to know his friends before they would let them spend the night; it was just too soon. This left Bart as he had to think of any reason why Homer or Marge would say no.

 

They informed the kids a couple of days ago that they planned to go out for dinner with Flanders and some of the parents from the church Saturday so he didn’t have to worry about them constantly checking in. He had managed to gain their trust a while ago and let him invite a few friends over multiple times, so long as they cleaned up their mess and didn’t cause any damage. He couldn’t see why they wouldn’t allow the sleepover.

 

“Alright, we can have it at my place. Let me just check in with the folks tonight and I’ll text you guys if it’s on or not.”

 

With that confirmation, the boys whooped loudly in satisfaction, gaining the attention of a few nearby tables.

~•~•~•~

Heads turning at the surge of noise coming from behind, Lisa and her friends turned their head to see where the commotion was coming from. Seeing that Bart and his table were the cause of it, the blonde shook her head before turning back around in her seat. Some things never changed with her brother.

 

“ _ _Anyways__ , as I was saying…” Alex’s voice piped up, continuing the conversation taking place before the interruption. “We need to get together and do something this weekend, ladies. It has been __way__ too long since we’ve all hung out together!”

 

Nina nodded in agreement, popping a grape into her mouth and chewing. “Damn straight. If I have to spend another Saturday holed up in my house, I’m going to lose it! What are we doing, though?”

 

Sophie tapped her fork against the edge of her tray while thinking. “Just what can we do, though? The usual shopping trip, hit up a restaurant or movie and then split?”

 

Allison sighed and shook her head. “No offense girls but I think we should do something different this time around. I can only go into Forever 19 so many times…”

 

Alex nodded in agreement. “No, you’ve got a point Alli. We need to spice things up! Any suggestions?”

 

The girls sat there as they contemplated in silence, trying to think of what they haven’t done yet. Becky broke the silence a few seconds later. “Maybe we can visit another town? Uh…how does Waverly Hills sound?”

 

The others winced and shook their heads at the suggestion, Lisa speaking up. “Becks, that doesn’t sound like a good idea. I don’t think any of us sans Alex have Waverly Hills money.” The fashionista butted in soon after Lisa finished speaking. “Even so, the people there are such entitled snobs.” Alex said this with venom, still sore about her last trip to the district in which she lost out on the last Louis bag to some trust fund brat who insisted that middle-class trash didn’t deserve such a bag. She had a personal vendetta towards that whole area.

 

Pouting as her idea was shot down, Becky took a bite of her mac and cheese. “Well, there goes my contribution.”

 

“Ooh, hold on, I have an idea!”

 

Nina was the one to speak up, catching the attention of her friends. With a cat-like grin, she gave her two cents. “Let’s have a good, old-fashioned slumber party.”

 

Immediately, the girls gave their answers in the form of squeals and compliments. Everyone pitched in with ideas of just what they planned to do at the party; painting nails, fixing their hair, watching movies, gorging on junk food and confessing what boys they had their eyes on. Before the group could get too wrapped up in the excitement, Lisa halted the discussion. “Ladies, ladies, let’s back it up a little. Where are we having the slumber party?”

 

The rest of the girls looked at each other for a second before looking at the blonde with a mischievous smile, not missing a beat in their response. “Your place.”

 

Lisa’s jaw dropped as they put the spotlight on her. “What?! Wait a minute, why are you all agreeing to this? Did you plan this ahead of time? I call mutiny!”

 

Sophie chuckled at her reaction before reaching over and patting the Simpson girl on the shoulder. “Relax, Lise, it’s not a mutiny! We just always seem to have the best time at your house versus ours.” The rest of them nodded at her explanation as Alex joined in. “She’s right, Lisa. There’s just so much energy at your house, it’s addictive.”

 

While Lisa appreciated the compliments, she still was unsure about playing host. Her parents gave notice that they were going to be out Saturday night and Bart was scheduled to work early in the day, leaving her home to watch Maggie. Even if her little sister wasn’t around, she wasn’t at that age where her parents fully trusted her to be alone with her friends in the house. The babysitting incident from her youth still had lingering effects to this day. “Hmm, I don’t know…”

 

Seeing that her best friend was still hesitating, Alex snapped her fingers. “Tell you what. Why don’t we each pitch in with something for the party so all Lisa has to worry about is asking her parents for permission?” Each of the girls nodded at her solution.

 

Becky piped in. “I can bring the nail polish!”

 

Sophie joined also. “I can bring the hair products!”

 

Nina gave her voice. “I call dibs on bringing the music!”

 

Allison spoke up. “I’ve got the movies handled!”

 

Alex finished. “That leaves me with the food. I’ll see if Winston can take us to the grocery store before the party, Lise. Looks like we just need your parents’ blessing, hm?” The platinum blonde emphasized this with a wink.

 

Lisa had to give it to the girl; she knew how to work her way around a difficult situation. “Alright…I’ll talk to my parents tonight about it. Just keep your phones on you so I can text you guys.” The table erupted into cheers as their plan was coming to fruition, leaving a smile on Lisa’s face as she was starting to feel the excitement as well.

 

This Saturday was going to be wild.

~•~•~•~

****The next chapter may or may not be longer than it’s previous ones, I’m hoping to start establishing some character traits and relationships ahead of time so this story can really get rolling. I was able to start this one immediately after I uploaded chapter 8 but I can’t promise the same for chapter 10. I want it to be as thorough as possible before the drama really starts so it might take a few days before I upload again.** **

****

****In the meantime, please leave reviews if you enjoyed or have any criticisms! Thank you!** **


	10. Say Amen (Saturday Night)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.  
> I accept constructive criticism. c:

“Marge? Maaaaarge!”

“Yes, Homie?”

“Have you seen my green tie?”

Marge had to think for a second. “Mint green or forest green?”

“Forest!”

“Check your sock drawer, it might be hiding in there!”

While Homer searched for his missing tie, Marge stood in front of the bathroom mirror, giving her hair another layer of Aqua Net. Saturday had reached so quickly and before she knew it, it was time to get ready to head out to dinner with friends. The excitement she had felt earlier in the week was still prevalent but…

Setting down her hairspray can, she sighed and stared at herself in the mirror.

Ever since she had seen the news about Jack’s escape, this sick feeling of unease crawled through her body constantly. The last few nights were riddled with tossing and turning while the same dream played out in her mind.

It was dark. Marge was all alone. Jack appears in front of her. With a psychotic smile, he starts stalking towards her, his muscular arms swinging by his sides. Before she can run or scream, Jack jumps onto her and knocks her to the cold, hard ground. His calloused hands wrap around her slender neck, slowly adding pressure until she starts getting dizzy. Out of the corner of her eye, she can see Homer and the kids tied up and unconscious, not knowing of what was going on right in front of them. Her vision starts going blurry with tears before everything goes black…

And then she wakes up in a cold sweat.

Three consecutive nights of nightmares were taking a toll on her physically. Looking at her face in the mirror, Marge eyed the concealer painted under her eyes to make sure it blended out and hid her dark circles well. She couldn’t remember the last time she had to put on so much makeup. Her life as a housewife didn’t require much knowledge of beauty products nor was she ever the type to fuss over them, barring special occasions. Some lipstick, mascara and a bit of eyeshadow was all she needed. Tonight though, she had those items on plus eyeliner, foundation and an eyebrow pencil to fill in the graying hairs. The benefits of getting old…

 

“Found it, Marge! Are you ready?”

Jumping slightly as her husband’s voice sounded from the doorway, Marge turned and gave him a smile and a nod. “Yes Homie…do you think I went overboard on the makeup?”

Shaking his head, Homer walked over to her and placed his hands on her shoulders, looking into her eyes. “Marge, you could be wearing no makeup or too much makeup and you’d still be a knockout.” Marge’s cheeks flushed at his reassurance.

“Thank you, honey…I guess I’m just starting to feel that mid-life crisis phase, you know?”

Homer sighed and nodded. “I hear you there. We’re getting old and the kids are growing up, it’s easy to feel like that. Hell, I can’t even drink as much as I used to and not feel it the next day…” The Simpson woman shook her head at his lamenting, not finding it to be as sad as he did. Since his promotion, Homer had to cut back on the daily visits to Moe’s and drinking in general, knowing how he could get when he was drunk. The lack of visits had strained his relationship with Moe and Barney but Carl and Lenny were still on good terms, if only due to working at the same place. Marge didn’t mind at all, the smell of Duff beer nowadays brought back unwanted memories.

“Well Homer, think about how far we’ve come after all these years. You’ve got a promotion and enjoy your job now, Bart has cleaned his act up, Lisa has already got a bright future ahead of her and Maggie is adjusting to school very well. It’s easy to look back and think that times were fleeting and there were…missed opportunities but I think we can say we had a fulfilling life so far and we have even more of it to come!”

As the blue-haired woman spoke to him with a wide smile, Homer couldn’t help but agree with what she said. While he did miss those times where things were more lax, the pros outweighed the cons in the present time. Still, he couldn’t help but lament for those times.   
  
”Yeah, you’re right Marge. I guess it’s just the ramblings of an old man, eh?” Marge giggled at his joke. “Alright, enough being sentimental. There’s a buffet calling our names!”

Realizing that they were cutting it close, Marge nodded and turned off the bathroom light and grabbed her purse from the bed before following her husband down out the room and down the stairs. While his back was faced towards her, she took a deep breath in before letting it out, determined to be relaxed for the rest of the night. She wasn’t going to let her worries ruin a nice evening out.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Homer shouted out. “Bart, Lisa! Come here, we’re leaving!”

Within a few seconds, Bart emerged from the basement and Lisa from the family room, making final preparations for their sleepovers. The day that the siblings had asked their parents for permission was tense. Their plans nearly blew over when they realized that their dates had coincided with each other, wanting to take advantage of their parents being out. Before an argument could break out between the two, Marge suggested that the two could keep their sleepovers on the same day but in separate parts of the house. Mulling it over for a minute or two, Bart decided to take the basement while Lisa chose to use the family and living room. The teens were grateful that they approved but their excitement was dampened a bit when Marge made it clear that there were going to be some ground rules since they would be out of the house. Just because the two’s behavior had improved didn’t mean that they were completely exempt from discipline.

Once the teens arrived to the front of the house, Homer and Marge started pulling their jackets on. “Alright you two, we’re about to head over. Remember, it’s Mark’s Eating House so if you can’t reach us on our cells, just call the restaurant. Maggie is over at Aunt Selma’s now so no need to worry about her but if you see her caller ID coming up, please don’t ignore it.” At this, she gave Bart a stern look, gaining a shrug back. “Also, we need to set some ground rules for tonight.”

Homer decided to join in, an equally stern look on his face. “We’ll probably get back late. You guys don’t have a bedtime since it’s the weekend but once we get back, you kids need to keep it down. I’ve got work in the morning so I need to sleep.”

Marge spoke up again. “I shouldn’t have to tell you kids this as I know you both stay away from these things, but-” One finger was held up. “No drinking.” A second finger went up. “No drugs.” A third finger joined. “No…snuggling either.” The teens’ jaws dropped and cheeks burned at what their mother was implying.

“For the love of…Marge, just call it sex, yeesh, they’re not babies anymore!”

“Homer!”

“Just call it what it is! But yeah, no sex or anything sexual under my roof. If anyone is gonna be doing anything sexual, it’s gonna be-”

Bart quickly cut off his father before he could say something embarrassing. “Alright, alright, we get it, Homer! You guys should _really_  get going, no?” Checking his watch, Homer zipped up his jacket and started walking out the door with Marge, shutting it behind them before getting into his sedan and backing up out of the driveway.

Watching from the living room window, Bart and Lisa looked as their parents drove off, sighing before they looked at each other. “Time to call everyone over?”

“Yep.”

~•~•~•~

Around 6:30 PM, most of Lisa’s friends had arrived and were setting up their things in the family room, save for Allison. Lisa had gotten a text from her earlier informing her that her parents wouldn’t let her leave the house until all of her homework was finished. The blonde felt bad for the redhead and how overbearing her parents could be went it came to school; whenever Lisa wanted to vent about a lack of attention from her own parents, Allison’s descriptions made her almost glad that it wasn’t worse. Almost.

The Simpson girl sighed as she continued setting up the snacks on the dining room table. Since her sleepover was going to be held upstairs, she decided to place all of the food and drinks on the dining room table so everyone was free to grab what they wanted. Bowls filled with popcorn, pretzels, chips and salsa were laid out along with two plates filled with pigs in a blanket and mixed veggies with dip. Three two-liter sodas were on one end, the flavors consisting of Coke, Sprite and Sunkist; a case of water bottles sat in the corner of the room for the health-conscious. At the other end of the table, two large boxes of pizza laid in wait to be devoured by the girls. Alex made well on her promise with providing food, having ordered the pizza ahead of time and getting her chauffeur to pick up Lisa before making a trip to the grocery store.

Nina’s head poked through the doorway to the dining room. “Lise, you got an extension cord?”

“Yeah, look in the end table drawer, there should be one there.”

“Cool, thanks! Oop, before I go…” Running over to the table, Nina reached into the bowl of popcorn and grabbed a handful.

“Nina! Get out of here, the snacks aren’t ready yet!” Lisa pouted while batting a hand at the brunette, missing as she ran back to the family room, laughing before shoving the popcorn into her mouth.

Setting down a stack of paper plates and bowls on the table, Lisa brushed off her hands before heading back towards the family room. Nina had plugged the cord into an outlet and started setting up the stereo, scrolling through her music playlist on her phone. Sophie was setting up her hair products and styling tools on the desk in the living room for later. Becky was chatting with Alex on the living room couch about what colors they planned to paint their nails tonight, the former having quite the collection that she brought over.

Alex saw Lisa come in and looked up at her. “Any word from Alli?”

The Simpson girl shook her head and plopped down next to her. “Not since earlier, no.”

“Ugh, her parents are such hardasses sometimes, I swear…”

 

Becky shrugged. “At least she’s able to come at all. Remember in seventh grade when she got a B- on that lit test and they wouldn’t let her out on the weekends for a month?” All three girls shivered at the memory. “You’ve got a point there, Becks. Still-”

The doorbell rang and cut off Alex’s retort. Lisa hopped up and ran to the door, opening it up and finding Richard, Lewis, Milhouse, Nelson and an unfamiliar boy standing behind it. Lewis raised a hand and waved with a smile. “Hey Lisa!”

“Hey guys! Come on in, Bart’s setting up downstairs.” Letting the boys walk in, Lisa shut the door and walked over to the open basement door before yelling down. “Bart, your friends are here!”

“Just gimme a couple of minutes!”

Shaking her head at her brother’s tardiness, Lisa motioned to the living room. “You guys can make yourselves comfortable in the meantime. I hope you don’t mind my friends being here.”

Richard perked up at the mention of the girls, a grin growing on his handsome face. “Oh? I guess I should be polite and say hi, then.” The other boys groaned and rolled their eyes at their friend. He never missed an opportunity to hit on any girl in the vicinity; at least he was respectful and backed off if she wasn’t showing any interest.

Lisa led the boys into the living room, the occupants looking up as the new guests arrived. “Sorry ladies, hope you don’t mind the company. Bart’s still getting the basement ready for them.” The girls shook their head, having been familiar with all of them for years, sans the boy with the dirty blonde hair who hung out quietly towards the back.

Nina, who had snuck in and sat in the armchair, spotted Lewis and gave him a glower. “Well, I hate to be that person but I do mind Mr. Clark being in here. Just where is my _Back in Black_  vinyl, sir?”

Lewis rolled his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. “I told you, I’ll give it back once you finish with my _2014 Forest Hills Drive_  record, Ms. Skalka.”

The brunette pouted at him. “Ugh, fine…I only have three songs left. I’ll bring it back on Monday, promise.”

“Alright, I’ll give you back your record on Monday. But Monday better not turn into next Monday again!”

“Yeah, yeah, I hear ya. Oh! I gotta show you this concert coming up!” Being waved over, Lewis went over to Nina and knelt next to the chair, the two chattering about some band with only a sliver of space between them. Despite their different appearances and lifestyles, the two were huge music enthusiasts and often traded albums with each other to listen to and give their feedback. Their friends noticed how well they meshed and often teased the two about dating each other but both of them always rejected the idea, preferring to stay friends. Seeing the slight color on Nina’s cheeks and the way Lewis kept touching her arm would contradict that claim, though.

Seeing his best friend become occupied, Richard rested his arms on the back of the couch between Alex and Becky, giving them one of his flirtatious grins. “Ladies, how are we doing this fine evening? Well, I’m sure it’s not as fine as the two of you are.”

The two girls groaned at his flirting. “Richard, we’ve heard that line before and I told you, it’s like, not a good one.”

“Seriously, where’d you get that from? _How to Flirt for Dummies_?”

Richard pouted and sighed dramatically at the two. “Ugh, you two just don’t know how to appreciate the language of love. Maybe if you stopped messing with these boys and got with a man like me, you’d understand!”

Alex wasted no time in putting her open palm in his face and pushing him off the back of the couch. “Boy, bye. Go tell that to some freshmen, yeah?”

Becky laughed as Richard stumbled backwards before straightening up, glaring at Alex. “One of these days, Alex. One of these days!” Becky reached over and patted his arm. “Down boy. You know we still love you.” The Asian boy flushed a bit at her touch before mumbling a thanks, gaining a sweet smile in return.

Lisa, watching the socialization from the side, giggled at the others before she heard a throat clearing next to her. Turning to her right, Milhouse was standing there with a dorky grin. “H-Hey Lisa…”

Forcing a smile on her face, she nodded in acknowledgement. “Hey Milhouse. Long time no see…”

“Yeah, it’s been a while…um, how’s classes?”

“Fine, fine…keeping me busy, y’know? How about you?”

The older teen shrugged and shoved his hands in his jacket pocket. “Same but luckily, I have some free time. Speaking of, um…there’s a limited showing of _Casablanca_  at the Aztec Theatre on Wednesday…” Milhouse looked up with a hopeful look in his eyes. “Did you wanna join me?”

The Simpson girl sighed internally, having been in this position too many times to count. Milhouse attempting to ask her out was starting to get really old. No matter how many rejections she gave, he seemed to come crawling back, thinking that she might pity him one day and say yes. Sadly, that day would not be today.

“Milhouse, listen…I appreciate the invite but I can’t accept it.” Like clockwork, the grimace followed by the look of sadness on his face appeared. “I’m sure you can find someone else to go with…there has to be another girl you can take!”

“But…”

Before he could start begging, Bart burst into the room with a devious grin. “What’s up, homeboys?!”

The girls greeted and waved at him, Becky in particular giving an enthusiastic one of her own. Cheers and whoops from the boys echoed in the room as they each went over and gave the teen fist bumps and hugs. The boy who hadn’t said much went up to Bart and patted his back with a smirk. “About time you made it up, your sister’s being a better host than you are!”

Bart rolled his eyes as Lisa snickered at the compliment. “Donny, don’t gas her up even more than she is, she can be _pretty_ insufferable.”

Lisa was ready to retort against her brother before she stopped. “Donny?” Turning and really looking at the boy, she squinted as she studied his face. Now that she got a good look, he did seem familiar but she couldn’t pinpoint exactly how she knew him. Bart, having heard his sister, turned Donny towards her, pointing at him. “Yeah, Lise, Donny. Remember? Kid from elementary school? Came in and outpranked me with some garbage? We were rivals and then became friends?”

Seeing that Lisa’s face was still scrunched up in remembrance, Donny spoke up with something that might jog her memory. “I helped spray juice boxes at you in the treehouse?” At this, the Simpson girl’s eyes widened with recognition before rolling. “Ah yes, now I remember you. Are you going to dump cola on me this time around?”

The taller boy chuckled and shook his head. “Nah, not my style anymore. Hey, if it makes you feel better, you can dump some cola on me this time.” Lisa’s pout turned into a smirk. “Don’t tempt me, I just might take you up on that offer.”

Donny laughed at the not-so-subtle threat before turning to Bart again. “So, we ready to get this party started or what?” The Simpson boy nodded and clapped, gaining the attention of everyone in the living room. “Alright men, get your asses downstairs, we’ve got food, drinks and video games waiting for us! Hup two, hup two!” All of the boys grabbed their bags and said their farewells to the girls before disappearing down the basement stairs, shutting the door behind them.

~•~•~•~

Jack took his sweet time driving over to the Simpson house.

Just an hour ago, he was packing up the last of his supplies in duffel bags and cleaning up whatever traces of him were left in the basement. The last couple of days were spent refining his plan. Before he knew it, the day that he waited for for years had arrived.

The convict had woken up early and made sure that the heat was still low by checking the news on the TV. Other than a brief mention of his name and the same info from Wednesday night, there was no indication that the police had figured out where he was located. With that cue, Jack started packing and moving his things into the Mustang throughout the day. By 6 PM, he had finished putting everything away and was ready to leave. The only thing holding him back was the old woman.

Surprisingly, she had a moment of clarity through her meds-induced fog and had questioned her ‘grandson’ on where her husband was, noticing his absence for the last few weeks. Thinking of a quick lie on the spot, Jack had comforted her by saying that grandpa had a lead on one of his conspiracy theories and went to Washington, D.C. to expose the president as an alien lifeform. He continued by saying that he promised to come back within the next day or two. The lie had worked as the woman sighed and shook her head, clearly used to her husband’s questionable activities, and hoped that he would come back without handcuffs and another restraining order this time.

Glad that she had accepted his word, he then took a moment to contemplate on what to do with her. His original plan was to eliminate both of the house’s occupants so there were no witnesses. In a weird way, the elderly woman had grown on him a little, mainly because she seemed to have no clue what was going on most of the time. Deciding to lessen the blood on his hands, Jack had let the woman know he was leaving with a sad smile, patting her frail hand as she looked up at him. She nodded slowly and slurred out a thank you for spending time with her and to tell his parents hello for her. Once he shut the front door behind him, the smile dropped to a cold, grim line of pressed lips.

Getting in the Mustang, he drove off to a Krusty Burger drive-thru first. He couldn’t operate on an empty stomach and he needed something to calm the butterflies in his stomach. Wearing a black baseball cap with the brim lowered over his eyes, he managed to order a meal without arousing suspicion; fast food workers weren’t exactly the most attentive people for $7.50 an hour.

Eating his meal as he drove, he went over the plan in his head multiple times. He would make sure that Marge was home by seeing if her car was parked in the driveway. Once he saw the car, he would park at least three blocks away and walk to the house with his main duffel bag before sneaking into the backyard. His best point of entry was one of the bedrooms in the back of the house on the upper level; he chose to enter the one that was opposite the treehouse. After making sure that the room was unoccupied, he would climb up the to the treehouse and tie some rope onto the branches. To reach the window, he would then take the loose end of the rope and add a hook to it before throwing it to catch onto the house, creating a line. He then gets another rope and adds a hook to that one also before climbing down to ground level, throwing it up to catch onto the line and bringing it in front of the window. He’ll then climb up it with the crowbar to the window, jimmying it open before hopping inside. Once he was inside, it was a matter of sneaking around and finding the blue-haired woman…and then…

A shiver of excitement traveled through Jack’s body. He was so close he could taste it. Seven years of waiting and it was going to all end tonight.

~•~•~•~

_“Breakfast at Tiffany’s and bottles of bubbles!”_

_“Girls with tattoos who like getting in trouble!”_

_“Lashes and diamonds, ATM machines!”_

_“Buy myself all of my favorite things!”_

Nina and Alex belted out the lyrics back and forth to each other, their hips swinging in tune with the beat. The two had been having their own singing competition with each other as soon as Nina had started playing her music on the stereo. The other girls, now joined by Allison, had watched them in amusement, occasionally joining in the singing while doing their own other hobbies in the family room.

Sophie had convinced Lisa to let her play around with her hair first, wanting to put some rollers in to give her a head of curls. Lisa gave in and let her friend straighten her hair first with the flat iron she brought along, sitting on the floor between her legs while Sophie sat on the couch. To her left, Allison and Becky were sitting on the floor across from each other, the former painting the latter’s nails carefully with a mix of neon pink and green polish. The blonde, feeling bad that the redhead had arrived late due to her parents’ antics, offered to paint her nails first but was rejected; Allison insisted on doing the painting, saying that it was a nice stress reliever for her.

“Becky, do you ever pick colors that can’t be seen from a mile away?”

Becky rolled her eyes and scoffed at Allison’s question. “No way, Jose. I’m not Nina, I can’t be all black and darkness all the time, you know.” Without missing a beat in her singing, Nina flashed a middle finger at the other. “How the heck did you hear me, you’re right next to the stereo!”

The brunette tapped her ears with a devious grin. “Supersonic hearing, Becks.”

The blonde shook her head while Allison giggled, giving her ring finger another coat of green. “Nine years of knowing Nina and you still don’t learn, do you?”

Sophie jumped into the conversation with a shake of her head, her eyes still trained on Lisa’s head. “She never does. You tell her to not do something, she’ll say okay; five minutes later, she’ll do the thing you told her not to do.” Lisa chose to speak up also. “A day in the life of Rebecca Sporter.”

“Oh, you guys suck, you know that? Hmph, maybe I should go see if Bart would-”

The Simpson girl fixed her with a stern look out of the corner of her eye. “Becky, if I see you go anywhere near that basement door, we’re going to tie you up and leave you in the closet with no food.”

Seeing how serious her friend was, Becky sighed dramatically and slumped over. “Fine, I’ll stay away from your brother… _again_.” Lisa reached over and gave the dejected girl a pat on the shoulder. “Atta girl. Remember, I’m doing this for your own good.”

Allison giggled again at their antics. Becky’s long-standing crush on Bart never seemed to waver over the years and now that the older boy was close to graduating, she seemed hellbent on getting a date with him, much to Lisa’s dismay. Lisa kept holding back the other blonde from getting anywhere with her brother, saying that Bart wasn’t looking for a serious relationship and would only end up hurting her in the long run. However, Becky was stubborn as hell and tried to look for any way to spend some alone time with him. Allison could see why Lisa was holding their friend back but wished that the Simpson girl would back down a bit. Having known Bart and Becky for many years, she could see their personalities working well, both being outgoing with a mischievous side. In fact, she thought Bart could make a decent boyfriend, unlike some people…

Before she could stop herself, Martin’s face had popped into her mind with an apologetic expression that had become too familiar lately.

The redhead forced herself to keep the smile painted on her face while she continued on Becky’s nails. Ever since the heart-to-heart with her best friends on Tuesday, Allison had started to question just when her relationship got like this. In the beginning, Martin had been so attentive to her, using his free time to take her out on dates or calling her every night and spending hours on the phone, conversations being whispered into the dark of their rooms. He had even surprised her by showing up to her band recital one night, even though he had to leave for a Harvard visit the next day at 5 AM. Now she was lucky if she saw him outside of school or got a daily text from him.

“Alli!”

Hearing Alex’s voice call her, Allison’s head shot up as it turned towards the other. “Yes?”

“What’s the name of that one song we heard in the mall a few days ago? That electronic-sounding one with the snaps that went doo-doo doo-doo-doo-doo…”

Allison’s face scrunched up as she racked her memory. “Uh…I think it was Bad Guy?” Alex’s fingers snapped. “That’s the one, thanks! You heard that, Nina?”

“Yup, got it riiiiight…here.”

As the new song started playing, Allison started giving Becky’s nails a top coat. Usually the blonde would be having a conversation with her but she had been debating with Sophie and Lisa over a recent episode of Stranger Things, leaving the redhead to slip back into her own thoughts.

She had meant what she said when she said that a serious talk with her boyfriend was being planned. It wasn’t fair that she kept getting the short end of the stick. Starting back in the spring, Martin had become preoccupied with applying and visiting potential colleges. Allison had understood when he started having less time to spend with her; she wasn’t one of those needy girls who couldn’t keep herself busy with other things. However, the time apart had stretched into wide gaps that turned from a couple of days into weeks over the summertime. With school back in session, Allison hoped that those gaps would lessen and things could be semi-normal. Oh, how she was wrong. The gaps grew into a chasm and she felt like she couldn’t touch him, no matter how far she reached.

‘Ugh, what am I doing? I came here to get away from that and enjoy myself for once…get it together, Allison.’

Allison twisted the cap closed on the polish. “Alright, all done!”

“Ooh!” Becky examined her bright, short nails with amazement. “Allison, these look _so_  good! Thanks a bunch!”

The redhead smiled, admiring her handiwork also. “I’m glad they came out right, it’s been ages since I painted any kind of nails.”

“Well, you could’ve fooled me, girl. Once these dry, want me to do yours?”

Allison examined her own fingers, her nails short and slightly ragged; saxophone playing had left them a mess. “I don’t know…there’s not much to work with…” Becky scoffed and waved her hand before carefully grabbing one of Allison’s and examining it. “I can definitely spruce these up a bit. Ooh, I’ve got a new nude color that would look great on you! It’s got a bit of pink to it but it’s not too out there for your style.”

The redhead contemplated for a few more seconds before shrugging. “If you think you can handle it, go ahead.”

Becky grinned and let go of her hand. “I _know_  I can handle it.” Allison grinned back at her friend’s optimism before standing up. “Thanks Becks. I’m gonna go get some snacks. Do you want anything?”

“Mm…get me a water and some pretzels, please.”

Allison nodded before heading off towards the dining room in search for food. On the way, she decided to slip her phone out of her pocket and checked for any missed calls or messages.

_Missed calls: 0_

_New messages: 0_

She sighed in exasperation before shoving her phone back in. So much for keeping her updated; he couldn’t even send a simple hello text?

This Saturday was meant to be a stress-free and fun day but life had other plans. Her day started off on a sour note when her parents dropped a bombshell on her; all of the homework she was given for the weekend had to be finished before she could head to Lisa’s house. This wasn’t the first time they had done this to her but what upset her was the fact that it was a last minute decision plus she had a project that required extensive research. And so Allison’s morning and early afternoon consisted of trekking various websites, reading multiple chapters and writing down as much info as possible to form a cohesive assignment that would get her the highest grade possible. By the time she had saved her last document, it was nearing 6 PM. She still had to get ready and pack her bag with whatever necessities and entertainment was needed for tonight. Once she left the house, it was quarter to 7 PM. The drive over was nearly unbearable as her mother rattled on about rules for being away.

No drinking. No drugs. Don’t go to bed too late. Call before she went to bed. Stick with healthy foods.

By the time she was dropped off at the Simpson house, her mood was nearly foul. She tried her best to hide her irritation when Lisa opened the front door but her best friend could see the tension in her shoulders and questioned if everything was okay. Allison promised the blonde that she would explain everything later but that she was dying to have some much-needed fun with her friends. Lisa understood and let her in, guiding her to the family room where cries of happiness greeted her late arrival.

Sighing, Allison reached the dining room table and grabbed a bowl, filling it with pretzels for Becky. After setting it down, she grabbed a plate for herself, staring at the veggie platter with distaste. This was the only healthy food here and she wasn’t finding it very appetizing compared to everything else.

Out of spite, the redhead started filling her plate with everything else on the table, ignoring her mother’s nagging voice in the back of her head.

‘I think some Sprite will go well with this.’

~•~•~•~

The streets of Evergreen Terrace were quiet tonight. Most of the residents went out on a Saturday night, looking to unwind from the long week before they had to repeat it come Monday. This worked to Jack’s advantage as he strolled down the sidewalks of the suburbs, all dressed in black and with a bulky duffel bag thrown over his shoulder. He abandoned the Mustang about four blocks away from the Simpson house and began walking over with his bag of supplies, making sure to keep his stride even and inconspicuous.

Using the dark of the night to his favor as well, he made sure to keep an eye or ear out for any civilians or officers that would spot him. So far, only a man jogging with music blaring from his earphones and a lone cop car came by; Jack made sure to hide in the shadows and avoid the street lights for the latter. Soon enough, the light brown house came into his view as he turned the corner. Before he got any closer, he scanned the driveway and smirked as he saw the red station wagon sitting there.

‘Looks like she _is_  home. Perfect.’

Continuing to walk, the convict reached the front of the house, doing a quick examination of the windows. All the curtains were shut but he could see light peeking out of one of them downstairs. Based on his stakeouts, he knew that this was the living room; hopefully that meant that everyone was downstairs so he could sneak in easily. Taking in a deep breath, Jack re-adjusted the bag on his shoulder before heading towards the backyard, opening and closing the gate with caution. He looked around to make sure the coast was still clear before eyeing the rest of the downstairs windows. The kitchen window showed a darkness as well, although he could see the light of the family and dining room faintly illuminating the empty room. Frowning a bit, he quickly looked to the upstairs windows. Seeing nothing but darkness as well, he went over the plan in his head again.

‘The boy’s room is on the left there…he usually works so he shouldn’t be there right now. Alright Jack, let’s get this over with.’

Making up his mind, Jack turned around to face the treehouse and shifted his bag to put most of the weight towards his back now. Cracking his knuckles, he started climbing up, ignoring the splinters that were pricking into his fingers. Once he made his way in, he set his duffel down and began rummaging inside, taking out the tools he needed to get inside the house.

Pulling out a crowbar, rope and a large hook, Jack scooted over to the window facing the house on his knees, the treehouse not being very accommodating for a man of his size. Poking his head out, he spotted a bulky branch near the base of the tree that would make a good support for the rope. He reached out and wrapped the rope around the branch five times before tying it with a sailor’s knot. With the loose end of it, he tied the it onto the large hook and threw it over his shoulder. Now he needed something solid to catch the hook onto in order to climb across.

Scrutinizing the area surrounding the window, the convict’s eyes caught onto the gutters at the base of the roof. Making up his mind, Jack carefully slipped out of the treehouse to sit on the branch with the rope, scooting out a bit to get some space behind him. He began spinning the hook in a circle with the rope before throwing it far enough, landing it on the edge of the gutter. He gave it a few experimental tugs to test its sturdiness and was pleased to see that it barely budged.

Now that he had a way to reach the window, his new challenge was getting inside...

~•~•~•~

“Richard, you suck at this!”

“Kiss my ass, Milhouse! I have a life outside of playing this game all the time, unlike you!”

Richard and Milhouse’s trash talking reverberated throughout the room, mixing with the rap music coming out of the portable stereo resting on the bar counter. The blue-haired boy had brought along his copy of Bonestorm V and challenged his friend to a couple of matches. A couple had turned into six by this time and the others were waiting their turn, some more patient than others. Nelson was not one of them.

“Hey bozos, stop hogging the game! You’ve been playing for almost an hour now!”

Bart looked at his friend’s scowl and sighed, knowing that he wasn’t going to be willing to wait much longer for his turn. “Guys, whoever loses next has to give the controller to Nelson, got it?”

“Bart, you’re not the boss of- Shit!” Richard swore as his character was decapitated by Milhouse’s character, jaw dropping in disbelief. “Damn Bart, you jinxed me!”

Milhouse gave an obnoxious laugh. “That’s Richard 1, Milhouse 5! Game over, Wang!” The gray-haired boy responded by flipping off the other before handing the controller over to Nelson. “Nelson, do me a favor and wipe the floor with him.”

The brunette smirked as he started picking his character. “Oh, you don’t have to tell me twice. Bring it, van Houten.”

While the two began a new match, Richard stood up and stretched. “Man, I could go for a drink right now. You guys want anything?” Without taking their eyes off the screen, Milhouse and Nelson declined while Bart asked for him to mix something up for him, preferably with whiskey in it. Giving a nod, he walked over to the bar where there was an array of alcohol and mixers. Liquor ranging from Jack Daniels to Smirnoff were lined up, courtesy of each of the teen boys; Richard was able to provide two of the bottles through a college-aged friend of his who lived next door, Lewis had received a six-pack of wine coolers from his older brother in exchange for doing his chores for a week, Milhouse and Donny snuck a bottle from their parents’ stash and Bart and Nelson had Jimbo buy two six-packs of Duff from his job at the local liquor store. While Homer had an extensive alcohol selection, he rarely visited it like back then and Bart was sure that he would notice if something had been drunk recently.

“Here, man.”

Looking up, Bart saw the red cup being held out in front of his face and took it with a smile. “Thanks man. Cheers?” Lifting up his cup, Richard nodded and tapped his own against the blonde’s before they both took a gulp, shuddering as the Coke couldn’t mask the burn of the whiskey down their throat. If only Marge could see what they were doing right now.

Hearing the stairs creak, the boys turned to see Lewis and Donny descending, hands occupied with bowls of chips, pretzels and cheese puffs. Since Lisa had occupied the dining room with her snacks, Bart had to leave some of his in the kitchen and brought the larger foods such as the pizza and wings down earlier. Lewis had offered to go grab the rest, Donny volunteering also, so Bart could get everything else set up. The two had set down the bowls on the coffee table, making sure not to get in the way of Milhouse and Nelson’s intense gameplay.

“Thanks for the help, guys.” The Simpson boy got up and went over to grab a paper plate to fill with food. “Shall we?”

The other three grinned before grabbing plates also, filling them up as much as they liked; Lewis and Donny each grabbed a beer from the mini fridge. The boys then took the open seats on the couch and armchairs, munching their food as they watched their friends continue to duke it out on the flat screen TV.

Bart was starting to appreciate that Lisa claimed the upstairs room for her sleepover. The basement had undergone a major renovation about two years ago at the request of Marge. With the increase of income from Homer’s job came a desire to spruce up various areas of the house; the basement was the main priority, though. After months of picking colors, furniture and a decent contractor, the dingy room was turned into an entertainment room. The cracked, concrete walls were now smooth and painted with a soft blue-gray and the stained concrete floor was laid-over with beige carpeting, save for the area with the washing machine, dryer and water softener; that small area had white linoleum instead. The furniture consisted of a cushioned black couch with two matching armchairs, a walnut wood coffee table with two end tables to match, shelving of the same color underneath the wall-mounted TV and a bar area with two black leather stools seated in front of the countertop.

The basement had an open space that was left over from their removal of the Olmec head and Homer immediately wanted to put a bar there. Marge wasn’t very pleased with his suggestion as one of his biggest problems was with drinking; the last thing she wanted to do was enable it. But when it came to thinking of other objects to put there, nothing that would be used for more than a month or at all was all they could think of. And so, Homer Simpson got his way and began consulting with Moe on how to set up his home bar. Unfortunately, he would only get to enjoy it for a little while before work became more demanding, leading Bart to sneak a drink or two once in a blue moon.

“Yes!”

Milhouse’s triumphant yell echoed through the room as Nelson’s character laid embedded on a bed of spikes.

Nelson snorted. “Damn van Houten, Richard was right, you must have no life to be _this_  good at this game.” “Hey, what’s wrong with getting good at a game?!”

Richard cut in after swallowing his bite of pizza. “What’s wrong is that you’re spending your free time with pixels when you could be out talking to some cute girls and having something called a social life.” The blue-haired boy glared at him. “I-I do have a social life! _And_ I talk to girls…sometimes.”

Lewis sighed and placed his hand on his shoulder. “Girls doesn’t mean Lisa and your mom, dude.”

The rest of the boys laughed as Milhouse’s cheeks reddened. “That’s not- But- Ugh, just take the controller so I can kick your ass too!”

Nelson handed it over to Lewis who was already being given tips by Richard on how to avoid Milhouse’s tricks in the game. “Go crazy, man. Oh! Bart, I’ve got some good stuff in my bag for tonight.” The Muntz boy stood up and walked over to his patched duffel bag, kneeling and rummaging around in it for whatever the ‘good stuff’ was. Bart and Donny looked over the back of the couch at him in curiosity before their eyes widened at what Nelson pulled out.

A Ziploc bag with a few buds of weed and a couple packs of rolling papers.

“Nelson, where the hell did you get that?!”

Nelson gave a devious grin at Bart’s question. “That, I have to keep a secret. The person I bought it from could get in major trouble if word got out. All I’m gonna say is that they’re the last person you’d expect to be selling this shit.”

Donny’s eyes were still widened as he looked over at the blonde. “You guys smoke too?” Bart looked at him and nodded. “Not often but yeah. It’s kind of hard to get it without the cops finding out. You sound like you’ve done this before.” The dirty blonde smirked and pointed to himself with his thumb. “Since I was 13. Foster home I was in at the time had one of the kids dealing weed so I managed to get him to give me some so I wouldn’t snitch.” “Nice.”

Nelson called out to the other three who were glued to the TV. “Oy, you guys wanna smoke tonight too?” Out of the three, Lewis was the only one who accepted; Richard wasn’t a huge fan of smoking and Milhouse’s lungs were still too weak to handle it. Shrugging, the brunette stood up and walked over to the coffee table, kneeling in front of it while he laid out his stuff. All of a sudden, he cursed. “Damn, I left my grinder at home!”

Bart’s face scrunched as he tried to think of something to replace the grinder before a lightbulb went off in his head. “Would scissors or a knife work?” Nelson nodded. “Yeah, I just need something to break this stuff down.” The Simpson boy started to stand up before Donny’s hand pushed him back down onto the couch.

“Bart, I can get it.” “Thanks man. There should be some scissors in the kitchen in the drawer next to the fridge.” Nodding, Donny stood up and started heading towards the stairs before Bart’s voice spoke up again. “Oh, and bring down those other bags of chips on the table!”

Shooting him a thumbs up, the dirty blonde started running up the stairs and into the dining room when he nearly collided with a smaller figure. “Ah!”

Donny skidded to a stop inches from them, holding his hands out to brace for impact. “Shit! Sorry, didn’t see you there…”

“I-It’s alright…”

Once the shock wore off, Donny took in the appearance of the person he almost ran into. They were a girl with long red hair held back by a headband and slanted green eyes that looked at him with slight curiosity. She was much shorter than him, only reaching to his shoulder, with what he figured was a slim frame though her dress hid most of it. ‘Kind of cute…’

Not wanting to come off as a creep for staring, he cleared his throat. “Sorry, I just have to get to the kitchen…”

The girl’s eyes widened as her cheeks flushed with embarrassment. She stepped closer to the wall, giving him a path to walk through. “O-of course. Go ahead!”

His lips twitching a bit at how flustered she got, he thanked her before going into the kitchen and flipping on the light. Opening the drawer that was next to the fridge, he started rummaging through the amount of utensils stuffed into it. Not finding a knife or scissors in there, he grumbled and closed it before moving onto the drawer to the left. As he searched, he looked out of the corner of his eye at the girl in the dining room while she continued filling up a plate with food. He figured that she was one of Lisa’s friends but she wasn’t there in the living room with the rest of the girls; maybe she came late.

Finding a knife in the drawer, Donny grinned and closed it before remembering that Bart asked him to bring the chips down. Turning around, he spotted the two bags on the table and picked them up in his free arm. Holding them to his chest and making sure not to crush them, he adjusted the knife in his other hand to point downwards; the last thing Bart needed was to have a stab victim in his house. Forgetting to turn the light back off, he walked into the dining room with his stuff. There he saw the redhead with a plate filled with nearly everything on the table. That was… a lot of food.

“I guess you’re pretty hungry, huh?”

She jumped at the amused voice that spoke up next to her before relaxing as she saw who it was. “Ah…yeah. I don’t usually eat this much but I haven’t eaten in a while, hehe…” Looking closer at her selection, Donny pointed his chin at the vegetable platter. “Not a fan of veggies?”

The girl opened her mouth to respond before closing it and shrugging. “I am, just…tonight’s a cheat night.”

Donny frowned as he eyed her up and down. “Cheat night? No offense but I think you’d blow away in the wind if you lost any more weight.” The second that sentence left his mouth, he regretted by the way her face morphed into a slight scowl.

“Well, tell that to my mother, she’s the reason I-” Quickly cutting herself off, the girl shook her head as if to forget what just happened. “Never mind…”

Feeling like a jerk for bringing up what was obviously a sore subject, the dirty blonde mentally slapped himself. His mouth tended to run off before he could think.

“Sorry…didn’t mean to bring up bad thoughts…”

“It’s okay…you didn’t know…”

The two stood there in awkward silence, looking anywhere but each other. Donny cleared his throat before breaking the tension. “Um, I should get back downstairs…y’know, before they come looking for me…” At this, he rustled the bags of chips in his arm. “Hunger makes people crazy, y’know?”

Nodding at him slowly, the girl’s eyes widened all of a sudden. She looked at the table and picked up a small bowl of pretzels; he assumed it was for one of the other girls. “Oh yes…I almost forgot my friend’s pretzels.” Managing to balance her heavy plate on the other hand, the redhead gave the taller teen a tiny yet polite smile. “Enjoy your sleepover, um…”

Realizing that she had no clue about his name, he remedied that. “Donny.”

Her eyes looked up in thought as she committed his name to her memory before looking back at him again. “Donny…I’ll remember that. My name is Allison.”

Donny nodded. “Allison…got it.”

Her smile grew a little wider, causing him to feel a little nervous, before she turned and started walking out of the dining room. “Hey!” Allison stopped in the archway and turned her head as Donny called out to her. “Yes?”

Giving a small grin to her, the dirty blonde spoke while eyeing her plate. “What your mom doesn’t know won’t hurt her, right?”

The redhead’s smile stretched out even more as she giggled at his joke. “Yes…I guess you’re right.” Allison continued on her walk out, leaving the other teen to himself in the dining room.

Donny’s shoulders sagged as he sighed and started making his way back to the basement stairs. That had to be one of the most awkward introductions he ever had in his seventeen years of living. He usually had an easy time getting to know people, _especially_  girls. Having to adapt to multiple schools and foster families left him with a charisma that was able to charm the pants off of people but there were moments were it malfunctioned and got him into shit. That moment with Allison was definitely one of them. Thankfully, she didn’t take too much offense to his insensitive remark and they were able to part on decent terms. He wondered if he would run into her in school in the future…

“Took ya long enough!”

The dirty blonde rolled his eyes at Nelson’s complaint. “If the knife was where it was supposed to be, I would’ve been faster.” Handing said object to the brunette, he took the bags of chips over to the bar countertop and set them down. “Bart, you suck at giving directions.”

Nelson jumped back in with a retort. “Simpson, how do you not know your own kitchen, man?”

Bart glared at him. “Are you gonna keep complaining or are you gonna roll some joints, Muntz?” Receiving a scoff as the other teen began his work, the blonde turned to Donny as he sat down with a beer straight from the mini-fridge. “Sorry about that man, mom tends to reorganize the drawers once in a while.”

“No worries.”

The two soon launched into a conversation about the last episode of Mythcrackers, both having found out early into their reunion that they were fans of the factual TV show. While they were discussing though, Donny couldn’t help but to wonder about the redheaded girl upstairs every once in a while.

~•~•~•~

Jack swore to himself as he climbed across the rope leading to the window, his palms starting to burn from the nylon digging in. His plan ended up becoming more difficult than he expected.

After setting up his hook and rope, he climbed back into the treehouse and prepared his other set before he had to go back down. Before he could start climbing down, he spotted the kitchen light turn on through the window. His breath catching, Jack settled back into the treehouse while keeping a close eye on the light, hoping that whoever was in there would leave soon. A few seconds turned into one minute before that turned into five minutes and soon that stretched out into fifteen, angering the convict.

He couldn’t risk going down right now and getting caught. Setting down his rope, he let out a short breath through flared nostrils as he racked his brain for a detour to his plan. After a few seconds, he looked at the line of rope he had set up first with irritation, knowing that there was no other choice he had.

So here Jack was a few minutes later, climbing across this rope with his legs dangling like a puppet and a crowbar sandwiched between his chin and chest.

Jack growled to himself quietly as he slowly worked his way across, having reached the halfway point by now. He was glad to have kept up his workout routine while in prison; there would have been no chance for him if he didn’t have upper body strength on his side. However, this didn’t mean that it was a cakewalk. Sweat was starting to bead and run down his forehead, the baseball cap not able to hold much of it longer. His palms were really starting to feel the burn now as well, his weight working against him.

‘Come on Jack, mama didn’t raise no quitter.’

Taking in a deep breath, he continued inch by inch on the rope until he finally ended up in front of the window. Making sure not to loosen his grip on the crowbar, he squinted into the room. He had a good view of the bed and couldn’t see anyone lying in it. Adjusting his grip on the rope, he held on tight with his left hand and brought his right one down to grab the crowbar. Ignoring the aching muscles in his neck from holding it, Jack lifted the crowbar up and pressed the flat end into the tiny gap at the bottom of the window.

Angling it and pushing up a bit, the convict wasn’t surprised to find that it was locked; fall was coming and the temperature had dropped, leaving no need for the windows to be opened.

Using more of his strength, Jack began wiggling and pushing until a crack sounded from the window. With the crowbar, he pushed it up and smirked as it opened smoothly, allowing him entrance into the house.

‘I’m in.’

Unfortunately, before he could celebrate his victory further, his left hand began shaking from all the weight straining it. Not wanting to push his luck, Jack refocused and lifted the window as high as he could before curling his legs up, sitting them at waist level. With a countdown in his head, he swung back and forth a bit to gain momentum before launching his legs forward and into the room. Managing to get his body halfway in, he squirmed the rest of himself in albeit not quietly. While kicking his feet, he knocked down the telescope that was sitting next to the window, causing a loud crash.

“Shit!”

Swearing out loud, Jack kicked the telescope hard before straightening himself up. He took in the dark room’s surroundings, making sure that he wouldn’t trip or knock over anything else. After his examination, he reached into his inside jacket pocket, pulling out a Bowie knife. Once he did that, it began sinking in just where he was.

He was in the Simpson house. The house were he stayed at for short but meaningful time. And somewhere in this house, there was a blue-haired beauty waiting for him, unsuspecting of his presence. Smirking sadistically as the moonlight reflected off of the blade, he muttered to himself.

“Marge, I’m back home. You better give me one hell of a homecoming…”

~•~•~•~

“So then I said ‘well sir, these are the legs I was born with. I will show them off as much as I can while I’m still young and if you consider that a problem, you’ll understand when I go to the manager and tell her that some old man is eyeing me like a piece of meat’!”

Lisa’s jaw dropped further as Alex told her story. “Wow…what did he say after that?”

The fashionista scoffed and flipped her hair over her shoulder. “Nothing, he was gaping like a fish and scurried out the door like a coward. Guess he never had any girls speak up for themselves before.”

Lisa shook her head before sipping her cup of orange soda. Her best friend was explaining how she had an encounter with an unsavory older man at a convenience store who took it upon himself to get in an eyeful of the blonde’s exposed legs with no shame. Unfortunately for him, Alex was not the type to stay quiet and nearly made a scene by calling him out. The pervert tried to shame her by saying she shouldn’t be showing off her body like that which resulted in the retort that she relayed to Lisa.

“You know what the worst part was? His wife and kid were waiting for him on a bench outside! The absolute nerve!”

The Simpson girl frowned before scoffing. “So much for the sanctity of marriage and children, huh?” Alex gave a humorless chuckle before raising her red cup up. “Amen to that.” The two tapped their cups together before taking a swig.

“So Alex, any ideas of what internship you’re going to do? And no, I’m not letting you go the school year without one.”

The blonde glared at her friend’s quip before lifting her chin up. “For your information, _Ms. Simpson_ , I have an idea of what I want to do.”

In a dramatic show, Lisa set her cup down on the coffee table before leaning forward and resting her elbows on her crossed legs, cupping her face in her hands. “Oh? Well, do tell, _Ms. Whitney_.”

“So!” Alex set her cup down as well before clapping her hands together. “I took your advice and thought of something I really want to do in the future and of course, all the signs pointed to fashion! Problem is that Springfield isn’t exactly trendy so all my leads were going towards stores in Capital City…”

Lisa winced. “Capital City is almost a hundred miles from here…”

“Oh girl, I know. As cool as it’d be to go, I’d spend most of my time over there or at school. However, I got lucky and found this place called Astra Boutique on GetLinkedIn that was looking for workers ASAP. There wasn’t too much info listed on the site but it said it would only take walk-in interviews during business hours.” At the wary look on her friend’s face, Alex waved her hands quickly. “DMY, I didn’t go by myself! It did sound a bit shady so I had Winston drive me to the place and wait outside in case some serial killer was waiting for their next victim. Turns out the owner is an older woman who wanted some help with running the place since her last workers had to leave for school or to move out of state.”

“So how did it go?”

Pursing her glossed lips together, Alex folded her arms across her chest. “Well, she sat me down and did an interview but she wasn’t too impressed when I mentioned that I was still in high school. Said it was asking for all types of problems with scheduling and reliability.” The platinum blonde’s lips then twisted up into a pearly grin. “Buuut, I mentioned how familiar I was with the fashion industry already and how boutiques needed someone confident in its products and knowledgeable in order to sell them.”

The Simpson girl’s own lips quirked. “Let me guess, you used your charisma and that silk tongue of yours to convince her?”

“Yes I did! I started looking around the place and listed off the materials, the beadwork and silhouettes with ease and I swear, her Botox almost budged with how wide her eyes got. So she told me to give her my info and the guidance counselor’s info so she can get in contact with them and see if she can get verified for an internship host.” Lisa gave her friend a few claps. “Nice job, Alex! Hopefully it goes smoothly and you can get some experience from this.”

Alex nodded before picking her cup back up and taking a sip. “I hope so too, Lise. The only bad thing about this is that it’s in… _Waverly Hills_.” The fashionista spits this out with distaste, scrunching up her nose. “Whatever, I’ll deal with the snobs if I have to. Plus the owner said that she had another girl around my age who started in the summer time, maybe she can show me the ropes.”

Lisa nodded at the other, straightening back up as she picked her own cup back up. “Well, I think you’re gonna do great, you’ve always had a passion for fashion.”

Alex smiled at the other’s encouragement. “Thanks Lise. By the way, did you pick one out for yourself too?”

The Simpson girl’s cup paused on the way to her mouth as the question lingered in the air. Sighing, she lowered it to her lap and looked at her friend. “Well...a lot of them sound intriguing but…I’m kind of interested in…”

Alex leaned forward. “In…?”

“The…Lazy I Ranch…”

Sure enough, the platinum blonde’s eyes widened and mouth dropped open at her friend’s choice. “The ranch? But I thought you hated it!”

“I did! But, well…I did some research and it looks like they’ve changed their ways since I went there. The horse-riding still exists but it’s only for certain hours a day and the horses are required to have an hour of rest between each trip. It also looks like they have more vegetarian options and ethical ways of obtaining their food for the dining hall.” Lisa shuddered as she remembered the barrel of cow tongues for sale.

“And what about the natives?”

“It looks like they gave them part ownership of the ranch and whatever land hadn’t been razed for future buildings as compensation for their intrusion.”

“Hm…if you ask me, I think you should go for it, Lise. You love horses, right? I mean, animals in general too, but you could get to know them more with this! A future vet should get some hands-on experience plus…” Alex raised an arched eyebrow and smirked. “You can start talking to Luke again.”

Lisa wasn’t sure whether to hide her burning face in embarrassment or throw the last bit of her orange soda at her friend. Of course she had a hidden motive behind encouraging her to take the internship. “Alex Whitney, why do you torture me like this?”

“Um, because my best friend Lisa Marie Simpson needs to stop being a wimp and not let some guy get between her and her needed ‘job experience’.”

The blonde scowled at her friend. “You’re so lucky I love you or else I’d kick you out for mocking me.” Alex shrugged while Lisa sighed in defeat. “Well…you have a point. Sooner or later, I have to pick an internship and the ranch is appealing…I’ll end up having to talk to him directly to get more info on exactly what I’ll have to do there…”

“Exactly. Like you said, he doesn’t seem to hate you anymore and if it turns out that he does, tell him to stick his hat where it doesn’t shine and find another internship.”

The Simpson girl sighed again and chugged her cup, draining the rest of her soda. “Fine, I’ll see if I can find him on Monday and ask about signing up.” Alex squealed and patted her shoulder. “That’s my girl!”

“Oh shoot!”

The two girls turned towards the family room at the sound. “Becky, are you alright?”

Becky turned towards Lisa from her sitting position on the floor, pouting. “No, I messed up on one of Sophie’s nails and I forgot to bring my remover. You wouldn’t happen to have any, would you?”

Lisa nodded. “I do, it’s upstairs.” Before she could stand up, Alex gently eased her back into the couch with her hand. “Lise, I can get it. Gotta run to the bathroom anyways.” The blonde smiled up at her friend. “Thanks Alex. It’s in the medicine cabinet.”

Alex nodded and got up from the couch, setting her cup back down before heading towards the stairs and up, making a right to head into the bathroom at the end of the hall. Shutting the door and locking it, the platinum blonde did her business before walking to the sink to wash her hands, the linen scent of the soap floating up into her nostrils. After drying her hands off, she looked into the mirror, frowning as she saw a few strands of her hair hanging out of its carefully formed curls. Quickly tucking them back into place lest she go crazy over them, she gave herself a thorough once-over before flashing a pearly grin at her mirrored self.

‘Perfect.’

Remembering what else she came up for, she opened the mirror and was met with a plethora of items in the medicine cabinet, ranging from painkillers to unicorn bandages and mini shampoo bottles. Spotting the bottle of nail polish remover, Alex grabbed it, along with a near-empty bag of cotton balls just in case, and shut the door. Unlocking the bathroom door, the fashionista stepped out and started to head towards the stairs.

_Thud._

The girl paused in her trek and frowned in confusion. ‘What the heck was that?’

Wondering exactly where the sound came from, Alex looked up and down the hallway until another sound answered her question.

_Thump_.

Her hazel eyes landed on the door leading into Bart’s room. ‘Maybe Bart or one of the guys is in there looking for something…’

But contrary to what people believed, Alex wasn’t an airhead who wasn’t aware of her surroundings; if anything, she was very observant. She had been sitting on the living room couch with Lisa for over half an hour and was a close distance to the stairs; she couldn’t recall hearing or seeing any of the boys come upstairs since they came to get snacks over an hour ago. All the girls were accounted for too although she couldn’t see why any of them would be in the Simpson boy’s room…well, except for maybe Becky.

_Crash!_

Alex jumped at the louder sound, now skeptical as to what the hell was going on behind that door. Looking at the bottom of it, she saw that the lights were off. Frowning as her curiosity was getting the better of her, she carefully shuffled over to the door and rested a manicured hand on the knob, slowly turning it and pushing open the door. Stepping inside, she squinted her eyes as she examined the darkness, curious as to who or what was causing such a ruckus.

Oh, how she wished she had went straight downstairs.

She dropped the bottle as her eyes eventually landed on a burly figure standing in front of the window, showing that the intruder was male. Her guess as to the cause of the noise not being one of the boys was correct as this man was way too built to be a high school student. The man must have been in deep thought as his eyes shot up to look back at the girl staring at him wide eyes, his own widening in surprise. Alex was ready to shout at him and question who he was until she saw the moonlight from the open window reflecting off of something large and shiny in his hand. Her mouth gaped as she realized that this man was holding a knife; a rather large one at that.

He must have realized that she was about to scream out for help for as the high school girl was about to turn, the man ran forward and pinned her to the wall with an arm across her neck and the other across her slender waist. Alex choked as her words died in her throat as the man cut off her air supply, staring up into his cold eyes as his face twisted into rage.

“You make one sound missy and I’ll slice your throat right here, ya hear me?”

Her hazel eyes widening even further at his threat, she nodded as best as she could with his arm crushing her windpipe. A cruel smirk came onto the intruder’s face as he loosened up the arm on her neck, removing the other from her body to carefully shut the bedroom door, effectively trapping the two in the darkness. “Now, I’m going to move my arm off your pretty little neck but if you try to scream or run off…” He raised the knife in front of her face, the blade looking even more threatening close up. “My little knife here is going to have to get acquainted with you, understand?”

Alex nodded shakily and gasped for air as he fulfilled her promise of letting her breathe, her eyes quickly filling with tears as her body trembled, realizing the situation she got herself into. ‘Alex Lenore Whitney, why are you so stupid?! Who knows what this guy is gonna do to you?’ Her self-reprimanding came to an end as the man gripped her chin in his calloused fingers, tilting her head up so she was looking back into his dark eyes.

“Now I’m gonna ask you a few questions missy and I want you to think real careful about your answers.” He leaned in a little closer, the girl’s nose scrunching at the stench of tobacco on his breath. “Where’s Marge Simpson at?”

The platinum blonde’s face twisted in confusion as to why this guy was asking for the Simpson matriarch and not her money or body. “She…she’s not home…”

The man wasn’t pleased with the answer as he growled and dug his nails into Alex’s jaw, his face looming closer. “Don’t lie to me, little lady. I see her car parked in the driveway.”

“I’m not lying!” Her confidence came back a bit as she narrowed her eyes at the man. “She went out with her husband and they only took one car.”

“Godammit!” She jumped as the man swore in frustration and raised the knife back into her face. “When the hell is she getting back?”

“I-I don’t know! Please…just let me go…” The girl’s bit of confidence disappeared as fear started to take over again. “I-I won’t tell anyone you w-were here…I swear…” The intruder barked out a laugh and shook his head, giving her a crazed grin. “Are you making demands to _me_ , missy?”

Looking away from his leering gaze, Alex gasped in shock as he pushed her head back against the wall, her neck aching from the angle it was being forced at. “You are in no position to be demanding _anything_  from me! Since Marge and that oaf are still out, we’re going to wait until they get home; I’ve gone through all this trouble to get to her and I’ll be damned if I go back without seeing her.”

‘We?’

Alex questioned herself as to why this psycho was roping her into whatever personal issue he had with Marge; although it was becoming clear to her in the last few minutes that this man had a few screws loose. The man then backed up from her and grabbed a fistful of her blouse, shoving her towards the open window, pointing his knife at her with his free hand.

“We ain’t hiding out here though. Go out that window and into that treehouse.”

Alex gaped at the man before looking out the window, which she realized was forced open, and saw the rope connecting from the top of the house to the open window of the treehouse. ‘He freakin’ _climbed_  his way into here?! Now I know he’s a lunatic…’

The girl’s thoughts were interrupted as he gave her shoulder a shove and growled out. “Get goin’.”

Swallowing hard, she took a split second to weigh her options.

1: she could jump out the window to land on the ground and try to escape, although a fall from that height would surely twist or break her ankle, rendering her means of escape useless as the man would surely catch up with her.

2: she could turn around and try to run out the door and into the hallway but that was the riskiest option. He was too close to her and would probably slit her throat as soon as she even got the door open.

3: she could climb into the treehouse with this psycho and wait out Marge’s return back home but who knew just what he would do to her in the meantime? Would she be a hostage? Would he torture her to pass the time? Or would he even…

Alex’s stomach flipped violently before she could even finish that last thought. Her eyes squeezed shut as she tried to get her shaking under control; she wasn’t going to even entertain the possibility of that. _Not_  again. _Not_ to Alex Lenore Whitney.

To her dismay, she sat herself on the windowsill and reached up, grabbing the rough rope and used her upper body strength to lift her feet up onto the windowsill. Taking a deep breath, she began climbing towards the treehouse, wondering just how her night ended up like this.

‘This is _not_  my idea of a wild Saturday night.’

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woooow, I suck at updating.  
> I deeply apologize for the delay! Since I uploaded the last chapter, I returned to work and attempted to search for a new job (to no avail :c), along with attending cons and making cosplays.  
> I’ve had this chapter about 85% done for months but I couldn’t get the time or motivation to finish it up until now. I hope you guys enjoy this long bit of writing, hopefully I can get the next chapter out in the not so distant future!  
> Small note: DMY = don’t mess yourself, something Alex had said in the series.  
> Reviews and criticisms are welcome!


	11. Clear and Present Danger

****Disclaimer: I do not own The Simpsons characters; only Katrina, Audrina, Tomas, and Rodney.** **

****I accept constructive criticism. c:** **

~•~•~•~

“Hell no, Becky!”

“Nina, stop being a Debbie Downer! Just let me-“

“Rebecca, come near me with that bright yellow and I will make sure you see black!”

Lisa and Allison watched with amusement as Nina and Becky were arguing over the blonde wanting to paint her nails yellow; the brunette was extremely against it, preferring colors as close to black as possible.

“Now you’re threatening me? Look, just let me do it for tonight and then you can take it off tomorrow!”

“Wh- I don’t care if it’s just for tonight, that color is not going _anywhere_  on my nails!”

Lisa could nearly see the vein starting to pop on Nina’s forehead as she failed to drive off the perky girl; she was almost worried that she’d take the curling iron resting nearby and retaliate. Sophie, having enough of the commotion, sighed in frustration and set down her plate of pizza before standing with her hips on her hands. “Can’t I enjoy my pizza in peace?!”

The two girls turned to their friend and began talking over each other as they tried to make her see their point of view. Before they could talk any further, Sophie placed her hands over their mouths. “Shush!” She fixated an irritated look onto the brunette. “Is it really going to kill you to wear the polish for one night? Hell, have her put it on your toes even, it’s fall! Who the hell is going to see them?”

Becky’s eyes lit up in triumph before the look was withered away by the scowl now fixed onto her. “And you, can’t you ever listen when someone says not to do something? When was the last time you saw Nina wear yellow? You should know better!” The two girls looked down with sheepish eyes as their friend tore into them.

“Now, are you two going to come to an agreement on something or am I going to have to knock some sense into you?”

The duo’s eyes widened at the threat before they quickly nodded their heads. Sophie sighed and moved her hands off their mouths. “Good. Now don’t interrupt me and my pizza again.” The satisfied girl sat back down on the floor and continued eating her beloved slice.

Nina and Becky’s eyes eventually met before the former cleared her throat. “So, uh…my toes are still clean…you wanna give it a shot on there? Might need some work…”

The blonde’s eyes sparkled as she grinned. “Nonsense, I’ll do anything to make them look good! But…how about we do a pink or green instead? Nothing too bright?”

“Make that purple and you’ve got a deal.”

The two shook hands as Lisa and Allison continued to watch, having giggling fits over their friend’s antics. It amazed Lisa how quickly Nina and Becky could get into petty arguments and out of them; it was like a revolving door. The other girls were usually the peacekeepers, Sophie being the more violent one as she had been dealing with their crap since first grade. Alex, however, chose whichever side she felt like that day, depending on what the argument was. She was often amused by the bickering duo that she wanted to see how into it they could get before Sophie had to get physical.

Speaking of Alex, Lisa hadn’t seen her for a little while.

She turned towards Allison with a questioning look. “Has Alex come back down yet?”

Frowning, the redhead shook her head. “No, not yet. You think she’s stuck in the bathroom? Maybe she doesn’t feel good…”

Lisa’s mouth turned down further out of concern. The fashionista didn’t seem sick earlier but a sudden stomachache or even that time of the month could have snuck up on her. “Hm…I’m gonna run up and check on her, just to be safe.” Allison nodded before heading over to Sophie so she could take the pin curls in her hair out.

The Simpson girl walked out of the family and living room to start heading up the stairs before turning to the right to look at the bathroom door. To her surprise, it was wide open and dark, showing that no one was even inside.

‘She’s not there?’

Looking up and down the hall now, Lisa noted that all the doors were shut like usual, including hers. Wondering if Alex had went into her room to look for something, she stepped towards her door and slowly turned the knob. Pushing it open, she was dismayed to see that her room was the same as she had left it; the only living, breathing thing in there was the napping form of Snowball at the foot of the bed. The blonde’s face only became more bewildered at the absence of her best friend.

‘Alex, where the heck are you? This is getting strange…’

Shutting the door carefully, Lisa bit her bottom lip as she tried to scramble her brain for where else Alex could be up here. She began pacing as she thought until her feet bumped into something on the floor. Looking down, she spotted something familiar: the bottle of nail polish remover.

‘Wait…this is outside Bart’s room…’ Lisa picked up the bottle and stared at it, hoping that this inanimate object would give her a clear answer. ‘She couldn’t be in there…could she?’

Turning her head to the door, she came face to face with a skull and crossbones poster. The blonde couldn’t fathom as to why her friend would be in her brother’s room but her gut was telling her to look, even if her efforts would bear no fruit. Sucking in a deep breath, she grabbed the knob and turned it, letting herself into Bart’s room. The breath that she was about to let out lodged in her throat as she noticed something amiss: the window was jarred open, the night breeze fluttering the curtains.

Bart never left his window open during this time of the year, especially when he wasn’t going to be in his room for a long period of time. Stepping closer to it, she noticed that his telescope was on its side on the floor. There were also wood splinters on the windowsill and the lock…

Lisa reached up and tapped it with her index finger. The lock was busted.

‘Oh no…someone broke in!’

She quickly turned around and scanned the room in a panic, using the moonlight as her only guidance. No one seemed to be in the room with her but it still left her with a big question: where the heck was Alex at?

‘She shouldn’t be wandering around with some criminal in the house…she could get-’

Her thoughts came to an abrupt stop as she spotted something small and shiny on the floor, the moonlight glinting off of it. Squinting her eyes, Lisa stepped towards the object, kneeling down and picking it up. Examining it closely, she gasped out loud as she realized what it was.

It was one of the buttons on Alex’s blouse.

It could have belonged to a random girl that Bart occasionally brought over but Lisa knew in her heart that the gold and pearl shank button belonged to one of the fashionista’s favorite Zendi blouses. Something was wrong. _Really_  wrong. Lisa clenched the button in her fist before standing up and running out into the hallway, looking up and down frantically. “Alex!”

‘In Maggie’s room?’ She ran to her little sister’s room and swung the door open. Empty.

‘Mom and dad’s room?!’ She ran even faster into their room and nearly bounced the door off of the wall. Not a soul.

“Dammit! Alex!” The blonde turned and ran towards the stairs, taking two at a time as she rushed down. Allison had just left the living room when she met Lisa with a concerned look. “Lise, what’s wrong? I heard you yelling and-” Before she could finish, Lisa grabbed her shoulders and gave her a panicked look.

“Allison, Alex is nowhere upstairs! A-And I went into all the rooms and Bart’s window is o-open and I-I think someone broke in and took her!”

“What?!” The redhead’s eyes widened. “A-Are you sure? Maybe she went downstairs and we didn’t see her-”

Lisa’s grip grew tighter, causing the other to wince. “Allison, you said yourself you didn’t see her! And look-” She removed a hand from Allison to show her the button she found. “I found this!” Looking at the button in her palm, the younger girl’s face paled as she realized that it undeniably belonged to her missing friend.

“Oh my God…” Allison stepped away and gripped her hair with both hands, mussing up the pin curls as she shook her head. “This is not happening…we have to get help!”

“Girls, you good?”

Both girls jumped as Nina’s voice sounded from the edge of the living room, joined by Becky and Sophie as they looked at the two with confusion. “We heard yelling, is everything alright? Did Alex come back down yet?” Lisa and Allison tensed up at her mention of the disappeared girl: someone had to tell them what was going on. The redhead’s mouth opened a couple of times before she could even get a word out. “A-Actually…we have a-”

Before she could explain, the Simpson girl sped off towards the basement, swinging the door open and barreling down the stairs. “Lisa, wait!”

The three girls’ faces now were colored with surprise at their friend’s sudden departure. “Lisa?”

“Whoa, is she okay?”

“Allison, what’s going on? Is Alex okay? I don’t see her with you…”

While getting bombarded with questions, Allison took in a sharp breath as she looked towards the basement entrance before turning back towards her friends. “Maybe we should go downstairs…”

~•~•~•~

“So guys, you know this guy named Danny? Average height, shaggy black hair, always wears a letterman jacket?”

The boys turned to look at Donny as he spoke, cutting through the scented smoke lingering in the air. Lewis nodded at his question. “Yeah, jock prick who thinks he’s hot stuff because he’s the star quarterback. What about him?”

“Well…” Donny blew out a few rings of smoke before leaning forward on the couch. “He comes to me after sixth period the other day and starts giving me attitude. Talking about how I need to ‘stay away from his girl’ and ‘watch my back before he takes me out’. I blew him off and told him to piss off and stop wasting my time. Any idea what the hell that’s about?”

Milhouse groaned and looked up at him from the floor. “Did a girl with brown hair in a ponytail and ringlets come up and flirt with you recently?” The dirty blonde scrunched his face as he combed through his memories. “Uh…yeah, I think so? I don’t know, there’s a lot of girls who’ve been trying to talk to me…”

At this, Richard chimed in. “Was she wearing a cheerleading uniform and chewing bubble gum?”

“Uh…yeah! Why?”

Richard tutted and fixed Donny with a stern look. “That’s Taffy, stay away from her, man. Bad news, that chick. She’s Danny’s girlfriend…if you can even call her that.” Milhouse jumped back in to continue. “Taffy flirts with nearly every other guy in school that she thinks is cute, Danny finds out and threatens or tries to beat them up, they get into a big argument, break up for about a week and then get back together. Once you see them making out in the hall, it’s a matter of counting down until the whole thing repeats.”

Donny winced at the bluenette’s warning before Bart spoke up next to him. “Hey Milhouse, you used to date her, right? Back in fourth grade?”

Milhouse sighed and nodded, taking a sip of his vodka before replying. “Yeah, I did. Definitely dodged a bullet there…”

Bart snickered, his lowered lids closing as he took a chug of his own cup. He gave mixing duty over to Richard so he could keep himself busy: Bonestorm V and the repeated losses were starting to work on his nerve. Whatever he had put in there, it was mixing well with the high from the weed and giving him such a relaxed state of mind that nothing could really ruin his mood.

“Bart!”

Said mood was broken by the sudden shout, causing Bart to sputter some of his drink out as he jumped. Wiping his chin clean with his sleeve, he turned to the source of the shout to see his sister standing at the bottom of the stairs. “What the…Lise, what are you doing here? You’re not being a very good host by leaving your-”

Lisa ran up to her brother and snatched the cup out of his hand, setting it down on the coffee table before gripping his shoulders hard. “Bart, this is no time for that, we’ve got a serious problem!”

The Simpson boy frowned as her frantic tone started to creep in through his inebriated state. Having her this close up, he could see the look of panic on her face. “Lisa, what is it? Shit, is mom and dad home early?”

“No Bart, just-”

“Is someone hurt? Wait, Patty and Selma didn’t call, did they? I didn’t hear the phone-”

“Bart, shut the hell up! Someone broke into the house and Alex is missing!” As soon as those words left her mouth, the atmosphere grew from fun to tense.

“What?!” The boys exclaimed in shock along with some higher-pitched voices. Turning towards the other voices, Lisa’s heart sank as she saw her friends now crowded on the stairs, faces painted with distress and fear. She could also see Allison gnawing her bottom lip as she tried to remain calm among the hysteria.

Nina dug her fingers into temples as she muttered to herself. “This can’t be happening…”

Becky’s lower lip started quivering. “Oh no…what if they took her?!”

Sophie quickly wrapped her arms around the blonde to comfort her, even though her face was just as distressed. “Beck, stay calm. We’re gonna find her, alright?”

Bart quickly stood up as he realized how grave the situation was. Not only did somebody break into their house and was hiding God knows where, one of his sister’s close friends was nowhere to be found and was in danger the longer they couldn’t find her. He gripped Lisa’s shoulders and fixed her with a stern look. “Lise, you’re sure about this? She didn’t leave and go home all of a sudden?”

The girl shook her head. “Yes, I checked all the rooms and she wasn’t in any of them! I even checked yours and that’s when I saw the window was jammed open and one of her buttons was on the ground. If she left, it wasn’t voluntarily and she would have said something if she had to go.”

The Simpson boy swore as she gave him more details, especially that his room was the point of entry for the burglar. “This isn’t good…”

Nelson stood up and cracked his knuckles, a scowl on his face. “Bart, let’s go search the house and knock some sense into this scumbag.”

Milhouse stood up on unsteady legs, giving Nelson an incredulous look. “Nelson, that’s suicide! What if they’ve got a knife o-or even a gun?”

Lewis shook his head at his friend’s protest. “Even so, we can’t just stand by and do nothing! If we call the cops, they’ll take forever to get here!”

Richard, in agreement, gave the others a determined look. “I agree. Besides, Alex could be in trouble. The longer we wait, the more likely she’ll get hurt.”

Donny grumbled and shoved his hand into his pocket, pulling out his cracked MyPhone and dialing. “I’m gonna call the cops, you guys come up with a plan and we can try and figure this out.” Holding the phone up to his ear, he waited for someone to pick up before groaning in frustration as an automated voice answered. “Goddamn!”

While Donny worked on contacting the authorities, the others scrambled together to figure out how they were going to solve this problem. Although half of the group was ready to go find their friend and take care of the intruder, the other half was cautious and worried about how dangerous the stranger was and whether they could handle them. They were just a bunch of high school kids, after all. Kids who gathered together on a Saturday night to enjoy each other’s company and decompress from the stress of everyday life and high school drama.

The only thing they could come to a solid agreement on was the hope that Alex was safe and sound nearby.

~•~•~•~

‘Okay…maybe I can gouge his eyes out with my nails? Or I can spit in his eyes instead? Less bloody and grody than my first choice. Or if I’m really desperate, I could kick him in the-’

“Oy, missy.”

Alex jumped as her train of thought was interrupted by the intruder’s gruff command. Looking up from her lap, she narrowed her hazel eyes at him. “What do you want?”

The man scowled and pointed his knife at her. “Watch the attitude, brat. You’re not getting anywhere but on my bad side. I’ve got some more questions.”

“Seriously? I thought kidnappers usually wanted their hostages to stay quiet, not play 21 questions.” Alex held back a smirk as she could see the man take a deep breath, satisfied that she was getting on his nerves from not playing the helpless little victim.

“Haha, you’re a regular comedian.” Leaning forward from his seated position, the knife still gripped tight in his hand, he began his interrogation. “Where exactly did Marge and the fat man go to if they’re not here?”

The blonde rolled her eyes. “Like I said earlier, I don’t know. All I was told was that they weren’t going to be home.”

“Hmph…where are the kids at?”

“Two of them are here, the little one isn’t.”

“Where is she?”

Alex gave the man an incredulous look. ‘Like hell I’m going to tell you where Maggie is, you psycho.’

Realizing that she wasn’t going to answer to that, he changed the subject. “Are there other people in the house except for those two?”

“Yes…but they don’t have anything to do with your little vendetta or whatever is going on with you and Mrs. Simpson.” The criminal barked out a laugh and shook his head. “I’ll be the judge of that, missy.”

The fashionista frowned at his comment and clenched her fists on her lap. If this psychopath got her friends involved into this mess, damn the consequences, she was going to make him feel her wrath. “They’re going to be looking for me, you know. Don’t think they won’t figure out that I didn’t leave because I wanted to.”

The man leered at the younger girl and scooted closer to her, causing her to unconsciously press herself against the wall. “And then what, hm? They’re gonna find me? What the hell are a bunch of snot-nosed brats gonna do to me, darling? Gang up on me, take me down and save the day?” At this point, he hovered his face only a few inches from her own, his well-muscled body covering her slender one with its shadow. Alex swallowed hard as he was starting to get too close for comfort, her heart picking up in speed as a familiar panic was starting to creep in. “I’ve got news for you, kid. This ain’t the movies, the good guys ain’t gonna save the day and I sure as hell ain’t leaving until I get what I came for.”

Alex tried her best but her voice still came out with a slight quaver. “You sound so confident that you’ll get what you want. There’s some real tough guys in that house, you know.”

“Oh…tough guys, eh?” His face broke into a sadistic grin that grew wider as he kept speaking. “Tough guys are who I got into fights with daily when I was young and I always won. Tough guys are the ones who talked shit and ended up with their teeth knocked out. Tough guys are the ‘heroes’ who don’t know how to mind their goddamn business and end up with their throats slit…if your friends know what’s good for them, they’d stay in that house.”

The blonde’s fear morphed into heated anger as he kept talking, going into a full surge at the threat to her friends. At this point, she didn’t care if she got hurt but she was damned if he even thought of harming the others for doing the right thing and looking for her. Noticing that her legs ended up stretched out in front of her and underneath his own as he practically straddled her, she took in a deep breath.

“You son of a bitch!”

Eyes widening at the sudden shouting, the intruder opened his mouth to retort back but let out a yell as pain shot up his spine. Dropping his knife with a loud ‘clank’, his hands shot down to cup his groin. “Fuck!”

Seeing an opening, Alex used her strength to push the man back, giving her enough room to quickly crawl past him and towards the treehouse exit. ‘Just a little further-’

Before the teen could reach freedom, a hand wrapped tight around one of her ankles, nearly crushing the bones. Just as she was about to let out a scream, hoping to alert someone nearby, her body was pulled back and thrown into one of the walls, knocking the wind out of her. Regaining her focus, a gasp of horror escaped her as her very enraged kidnapper bared his teeth at her.

“You’re gonna pay for that, you little bitch.”

Desperate to continue fighting back, Alex swung her right fist, aiming to connect with his temple. To her dismay, the man quickly entrapped her hand in his much larger, calloused one, giving a humorless chuckle.

“Cute, going and pulling a stunt like that, missy. And now you’re trying to swing at me?”

Adjusting his hold, he opened her hand to lay palm to palm against his, lacing his fingers through her own. Squirming in discomfort at the intimate gesture, the blonde opened her mouth but instead of a demand, a whimper escaped as his grip began tightening.

“You know, I should warn you that I’m not in a great mood right now.” He squeezed harder. A louder whimper.

“I busted my ass to break out of that penitentiary-” Harder. A cry of pain.

“I go into hiding and do all this planning just to break into this house-” Harder. A plea of ‘stop’.

“I get this far into my plan and does it go smoothly? No, instead who I came for isn’t even here and some little brat thinks she can overpower me and escape and snitch.”

At this point, Alex’s eyes were filling with tears as unimaginable pain started to travel up from her abused hand. Her fingers were starting to bend back at an unnatural angle; she wouldn’t be surprised if this man snapped them in half. However, her fire wasn’t completely gone yet. Licking her trembling lips, she fixed him a hard stare with watery eyes.

“Sucks to be you, huh?”

Before she could enjoy that bit of spite, something flew out in front of her face and connected, causing her head to swing back as her cheek started stinging.

‘He…he slapped me!’

Not giving the teen a chance to recover from the blow, the criminal grabbed a fistful of platinum locks, ignoring her shriek as he brought her face close to his livid one. “You just want me to kill ya, huh? _Don’t. Test. Me._ ”

With each word, he gave her head a sharp tug, causing the tears start flowing finally as her scalp felt like it was on fire. At this, the man gave a vicious chuckle. “What happened, brat? Not so tough anymore, eh?” Leaning in, he left little more than an inch between their faces as he growled lowly. “Now you’re gonna be a good girl and shut the hell up. Any more of your little stunts and I’ll make sure you won’t see the sun rise again, got it?”

Alex cringed harder as he spoke each word; his breath stunk of cigarettes and was making her feel even more dizzy. Taking her lack of speech as defiance, the man growled and gave a sharp tug of her hair again, pulling a cry out. “O-Okay! P-Please stop…”

Satisfied with her answer, he let go of her head before reaching for the leftover rope in the corner. “Turn around and put your hands behind your back. No funny business, either.”

Not wanting to push her luck further, Alex complied while trying to collect herself. Her scalp was burning and she was sure a few strands were pulled out, the affected cheek was throbbing hard and welting and her mascara was running down from her tears. While her hands were bound with the rope, she couldn’t stop an ironic idea coming into her head despite her present danger.

Her mother would surely have a fit over her bald spot and make her go to the dermatologist ASAP.

A bitter smile came on her lips before it vanished.

That is, if she made it out alive.

‘FML…’

~•~•~•~

It took the teens a couple of calls from five different phones before they could get someone on the phone and this is what they had to deal with.

_“Okay, slow down, guys. Now, are you sure that no one left the window open and your friend didn’t just get a ride home?”_

Lisa’s patience grew thinner as the voice of Chief Wiggum repeated the same question from before. “Yes, we’re sure! My friend wouldn’t up and leave like that!”

Bart jumped in, leaning in so he could be heard clearly over the speaker phone. “And I haven’t opened my window in a couple of weeks since the temperature dropped.”

Hearing the muffled murmur as the chief discussed with other voices, a rustle sounded as his voice became clear again. _“Look, kids. I know you’re worried about all this but I don’t have many men to spare to check for you.”_ After this, a snorting laugh rang out.   _“I mean, they’re doing overtime for this Crowley case and we’re not even giving them raises_.”

Seeing that his sister was on the verge of popping a vein and saying some foul words to the chief, Bart squeezed her shoulder and gave her a stern look, urging her to take a deep breath. Getting his own irritation out of the way, he spoke again. “Chief Wiggum, you’re really going to just let a missing teen and a possible burglar go like that? What happened to ‘to protect and serve’?”

Wiggum sighed and started in an annoyed tone. _“Ugh, that slogan? You know, they really oughta change that to ‘to protect and serve but only for important things…oh, and uh, before 8 PM’. These crazies really like to come out at night, ya know?”_

The Simpson siblings ground their teeth as he rattled on. Chief Wiggum’s incompetence seemed to get worse over the years, along with his weight. It was a miracle the man hadn’t been fired and bedridden at home for all the cases he’s screwed up or neglected. If it wasn’t for Lou and Eddie’s guidance, his position surely would’ve been passed onto the former for having some degree of justice and taking matters into his own hands. But that hadn’t happened and the teens were at a standstill of how to help Alex.

“Chief, how about you get off your fat-”

“I think Jack Crowley is here!”

A noise that sounded like a drink being spit out sputtered from the other line while Lisa looked at her brother with a gaping mouth.

“Bart, what are you-”

Quickly motioning her to be quiet with his finger over his lips, the older teen continued. “Chief, are you still there?”

_“Y-Yeah, I am! Are you sure he’s there, kid?!”_

“I am. I actually saw that car he stole, that Mustang, down the street. Plus…” Bart looked upwards as he tried his best to recall his past memories to sweeten the lie. “He did stay with us for a little while when we were younger…maybe he came back to see mom?”

 _“Holy cow…you just gave us a big breakthrough, kid!”_ Wiggum’s voice became fainter as he turned from the phone and began barking orders to the rest of the department. A few seconds later, his animated voice returned. _“Give us your address, quick!”_

“742 Evergreen Terrace. Please hurry!”

_“Don’t worry, we’ll be there in two shakes of a meal!”_

With the click of the phone, Bart let out the breath he’d been holding as he turned to his sister. “Well, that went smoother than I expected.”

“Bart, what the heck? You just _lied_  to the police! About a wanted criminal!”

“...Your point being?”

The younger teen’s eyes narrowed as she placed her hands on  her hips. “You could get in _major_  trouble if they find out. The last thing we need is you getting fined or arrested for this!”

The older teen matched his sister’s glare, folding his arms over his chest. “Lisa, there’s a time and a place to be a goody two-shoes and this is not it. Would you rather let the police be lazy asses and let Alex get hurt or get them here to help save her? Take your pick.”

At the mention of her best friend, Lisa’s face withered into concern at the thought of Alex suffering for someone else’s incompetence. She had to concede with her brother for once as his manipulation could save a life. “Y-You’re right…sorry, this is all just…”

Seeing his sister’s eyes fill with tears as she looked down at the carpet, Bart sighed and pulled her into a tight hug, burying her face into his chest. “Don’t cry, Lise. We’re gonna get her back to us, even if we have to make up more lies.”

Letting out a sniffle, the Simpson girl nodded and gave her brother a squeeze. “I hope this works out…”

“Lisa!”

Hearing her name shouted from the living room, Lisa pulled away from Bart’s embrace and turned to see Allison and Richard standing in the doorway. “What is it?”

Allison spoke first. “We were coming up with ideas to try and save Alex and Richard, um…”

Noticing how she trailed off with hesitation, Richard cleared his throat and finished for her. “I think we should split up and go investigate the area.”

Bart’s jaw dropped at his plan while Lisa’s eyes widened in alarm. “Are you saying we should drive us all into the arms of a criminal? Yeah, that sounds like a _brilliant_ plan, Richard.”

The Asian boy glared at the blond for his sarcastic quip. “I didn’t mean _all_  of us, dickhead. Just the boys go looking while the girls stay inside until the police arrive or Alex comes back.”

Lisa chewed on her bottom lip as she ran the idea over in her head. “But still, that sounds kind of dangerous…and how are we so sure that Alex is still in the area?” Richard cursed as he didn’t think of that issue.

“Shit…well, there goes my lead.”

“Wait!” Three heads turned to look at Allison’s face, her eyes lit up with fervor. “There might be a way.” Turning to Lisa, she began. “Lise, did Alex take her phone with her?”

“Allison, what kind of question is that, you know she always-” Her eyes widened in clarity. “She always has her phone on her! Were you thinking of-”

“Calling her phone? Yes! If we call her, maybe she can answer it and we can find out where she is at the moment.”

“And what if her kidnapper picks up instead?”

Allison looked at Bart with determination. “Then we demand he returns our friend or pays the price.”

With her solid plan coming to light, the teens felt an inkling of hope in their hearts. This could either go really well or really bad.

~•~•~•~

Jack Crowley wasn’t always a man of great patience, especially in his youth. When he wanted something, he wanted it ASAP. Now was one of those times where patience wasn’t a virtue.

It was nearing 9 PM and there was no sign of Marge.

Grumbling obscenities under his breath once again, he shifted his cramped position in the treehouse to stretch his legs out, one going to its own corner. Unfortunately for his captive, this obtrusion would cause her to curl up further in the corner, wanting to get as far away from him as possible. Smirking at her obvious discomfort, he studied the girl from the corner of his eye.

She couldn’t have been older than 15 or 16 although her outfit screamed ‘I’m so mature for my age!’.  Her platinum blonde hair was now mussed and barely showing a ghost of the curls from earlier. All that crap she had put on around her eyes was now smeared around and down her cheeks from her weeping. Her mouth was the one thing Jack was getting tired of so he had to remedy that. After tying her hands together, he grabbed a piece of cloth from his bag and used it as a gag for the brat. A chuckle had escaped at the enraged look on her face as he tied it on.

He couldn’t help but note how she reminded him of those trust fund brats from when he was of school age. They were brutal towards him for coming from a low-class home and wearing the same shirts every week, laughing and pointing while they waited for their limos to pick them up. One girl especially told him straight to his face after he asked her out that garbage should stay on the floor where they belong. Not only did her words hurt but the disinterested way she had spoken while studying her French tips packed a punch. His grudge couldn’t help but stay up until the present, never being shot down by an exception.

He didn’t feel bad for roughing this girl up; if anything, she could run to daddy and get some plastic surgery for her poor face.

_Thank you, next (next)_ _  
_ _Thank you, next (next)_

Both occupants of the treehouse jumped at the sudden music, breaking the tense silence. Jack’s eyes narrowed as he tried to figure out the source of the sound; he got his answer when the girl’s eyes widened and looked down at her skirt pocket.

‘These brats and their cell phones…’

“Is it tracked?”

The girl’s eyes went back up to look at his, narrowing a bit as she shook her head. Pressing his chapped lips together, he stared at her pocket before reaching forward, ignoring her flinching, pulling the green MyPhone out. Instead of a random number, the caller ID read _‘Lisa’_ , surrounded by nerd emojis and way too many hearts.

Ready to let it ring out, Jack was about to put the phone down until an idea popped into his head. Letting a cruel grin take over, he waved the device at his hostage. “Looks like your friends _are_  looking for ya. What do you say we say hello to them, missy?”

~•~•~•~

The living room was rife with tension as the teens waited with bated breath, Lisa’s phone sitting on the coffee table on. Donny and Nelson were leaning on one of the walls, their folded arms and bent legs not showing the anger they were feeling. Lewis was sitting on one of the armchairs with Nina on the arm, his hand discreetly rubbing the small of her back in comfort. Milhouse and Bart stood behind the couch where Lisa, Allison and Sophie were sitting, staring hard at the phone. Richard sat one the other armchair, eyes going between the device and Becky with concern, sitting on the floor with her head on Sophie’s lap, looking to be on the verge of tears.

Shortly after her, Bart, Allison and Richard refined the redhead’s plan, they went to the others to inform them of what they were about to do.

Lisa would call Alex. After her, or her captor, speaks up, then the call would be put on speaker for everyone to listen in. Allison stressed the importance of listening for any background noises to identify their location; she was also hoping to get some verbal clues in the most discreet way possible. She also tasked Nina with having the police on speed dial to pass said clues on or in the worst case, urge them to chase after the criminal in case their friend was in fatal danger.

The Simpson girl’s palms were sweating as she stared at the screen, praying to Buddha that this plan was going to work.

_Click._

Silence for a few seconds.

_“H-Hello?”_

It took everything in them not to shout or cry in relief as Alex’s voice spoke through the speaker. Lisa herself let out the breath she had been holding before speaking.

“Alex! Thank God you picked up! Where are you, we’re worried sick?!”

 _“L-Lisa…”_ Her throat cleared. _“I, um, had to step out for a bit. Needed fresh air, you know?”_

Lisa frowned. She could tell when the fashionista was lying. “But you never told us…and I found your shirt button in Bart’s room, like someone ripped it off…” A sharp breath was taken in on the other end.

Licking her dry lips, she spoke slowly and carefully. “Alex…is someone holding you hostage?”

Silence again.

_“Y-Yes…oh God, Lise, I’m so scared! I-”_

The scared teen’s voice cut off and Lisa was about to scream for her, fearing the worst, until a gravelly voice came on instead.

_“Sorry for the hysteria, missy. My friend here isn’t in the best emotional state, ya see.”_

The temperature in the room nearly dropped with how cold the echoing voice sounded. It brought chills to even the toughest ones in the room, realizing how serious this situation was. Bart regained his composure and leaned over the couch, half-yelling at the stranger. “Who the hell are you? What have you done to Alex?”

An amused chuckle sounded. _“Hold on son,_ I _ask the questions around here. Keep buggin’ me and I just might have to throw this phone out the window.”_

“No!” Lisa shouted as she leaned forward. “Please, we just want our friend back! W-What do you want from us?”

_“Well, for starters…where’s your mother at?”_

The teens all looked at each other in confusion, not expecting that sort of question. “Wh-What? Why? How do you know mom?”

_“Oh wow, y’all really don’t remember me? Funny, since your mom and I go way back…”_

Bart and Lisa were really confused now at his remark. It was damn near impossible to pinpoint who this stranger was; the amount of people they had met through their parents over the years was infinite.

Shaking his head before they got off-track, the Simpson boy spoke. “Look man, she’s not home so just-”

A scoff sounded. _“No shit, son. I’ve been around and I haven’t seen one sign of her in this area. I’m looking for details, kid.”_

“And why the hell would I tell you where my mom is?”

 _“Because if you don’t-”_ A rustling sound and a small cry echoed out _. “I’ll slit this trust fund brat’s throat and come for the rest of you until I get. What. I. Came. For.”_

A couple of faces paled in fear while a few reddened with anger, Bart’s own included as he growled under his breath. ‘That son of a-’

“You son of a bitch!”

To everyone’s shock, Becky stood up from the floor, her hands curled in shaking fists as her cheeks flushed with rage. “You’re gonna hurt an innocent girl over…I don’t even know what! You’re a monster, a goddamn monster! Give us our friend back or you’re gonna pay! I mean-”

A roaring laugh rang throughout the room as the kidnapper found amusement in her anger.

 _“Holy shit, I- haha! I never thought a bunch of brats would have the balls to threaten_ me _!”_ Just like a switch was flipped, the voice became even colder than before. _“You’re gonna make me pay? Is that right? Then go ahead and come for me, you little shits.”_  A cry sounded again, louder this time and followed by desperate pleas. _“Come for me or get the police involved and I’ll rough this brat up even worse than I already did.”_

Allison gasped in alarm as her worst fears were founded: this man was a savage and had already hurt Alex. “Oh no…”

Nelson came off of the wall and approached the phone, the vein in his neck throbbing as he screamed. “She better be in one piece when we get her, you scumbag! I ain’t scared of you!”

_“Is that so? Well, I guess it’s easy for you to sound tough over the phone, eh?”_

“You mother-”

All of a sudden, the sound of sirens began rising in the background of the phone call. The kidnapper cursed. _“Dammit…I hate to cut this call short but looks like there’s some heat nearby.”_

Allison cried out. “No, wait!”

The man grumbled at the interruption. “One sentence and that’s it.”

“What…what’s your name?”

_“Hmph…guess you kids don’t watch the news often. It’s Jack. Jack Crowley.”_

_Click_.

The room became silent once again with the click as a signal. The situation had somehow worsened within those few minutes. Not only was Alex injured and a hostage under a criminal, that criminal was an escaped convict that had been making the news for the past few weeks. Bart and Lisa swallowed hard as the memories began to flow back. Their mom had taken in a convict in their childhood that could paint very well and lived in their basement. They remembered the day he didn’t come home and she had to tell them that he had committed arson and would be going back to prison for a very long time.

They never expected to meet him like this again.

Within a few seconds, a wail of despair came from Becky as she sank to her knees and buried her sobbing face in Sophie’s lap once again. The brunette did her best to comfort her friend, running a shaking hand through her half-done hair. “Shh, Becks, it’s gonna be alright.”

“Godammit!” Nelson roared as he kicked the corner of the couch in rage. “That bastard is gonna get what’s comin’ to him, just lemme get my hands on him!”

Donny walked over and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Relax, man. We’re all pissed but we gotta think clear if we wanna help her.”

“Don’t worry, we’re _going_  to help her.”

Multiple heads to look at Nina as she spoke, her face matching her ton of determination. Seeing everyone’s eyes on her, she smirked and held up her phone towards them. “I couldn’t wait for your signal so I took matters into my own hands.”

The display screen showed 911 listed on the top and a call time lasting for five minutes and twenty-seven seconds. “The operator said that they were only a couple of blocks away.”

Lewis looked up at her with awe. “Damn, Nina. Way to go!” Giving her a fist bump, he grinned at the others. “Now we just gotta figure out where exactly they are. Did anyone pick up on anything?”

While the others scrambled for anything that stood out, their thoughts were interrupted as some noise from outside seemed to get louder. Milhouse was the first to notice and got up from his chair, groaning as he walked over to the window to peek.

“What’s with all that noise? …Ah!”

Bart ran up to his best friend. “What is it, Milhouse?”

“I-It’s the cops! They’re here!”

Once he said that, red and blue lights began to shine into the living room and onto their faces, the sirens being heard clearly now. More than one car began to park outside the Simpson house, blocking the road off for other drivers. “About freakin’ time!”

As the rest of the teens began making a commotion, going over what to tell the police and if they should call their parents, Lisa sat on the same spot on the couch. Thinking hard and deep, she gnawed on her bottom lip until it turned red as she tried to figure out where Alex could be.

She couldn’t hear much background noise for most of the call, only Alex’s distressed cries could be heard. Lisa shivered at the thought of what Jack had done to her. Pushing that aside, she continued putting pieces together. Most likely, they were still in the neighborhood. The fashionista was feisty and Lisa knew she wouldn’t have gone without a fight; it would have been risky to drag her throughout Evergreen Terrace and cause a scene. ‘Think Lisa, think…’

She closed her eyes. It also had sounded like rustling in the back, almost like…leaves? Lisa frowned.

That didn’t make much sense; there were trees throughout the whole neighborhood so of course they’d be near one. But it wasn’t the sound of leaves itself, it was how loud and close it was…almost like they were in the tree?

‘Wait…these trees on the street aren’t that strong…you’d have to go find one of the few oak trees. But then how would they sit up on the branches and not fall? They’d be better off in a treehouse…’

From that last word, Lisa’s eyes opened quickly.

‘Treehouse…the treehouse?! That couldn’t be, but…there were sirens sounding before the call ended…oh my God…’

“Bart, I know where they are!”

Startled by Lisa’s sudden yelling, everyone turned to her, her brother’s eyes widening. “You do?!”

The Simpson girl’s face fell into a look of resolve. “They’re hiding in the treehouse.”

~•~•~•~

****Hi guys, back with another chapter (finally)! :D** **

****This chapter took a few revisions to get to a satisfactory place, I’m starting to tread into unfamiliar territory with the violence and drama. I also was hoping to get some more progression stuffed into this chapter but the length started getting crazy so I had to split it into two parts.** **

****I hope you guys enjoy this, I’d like a couple of reviews to make sure things are going well in the story before I continue on the next chapter. I’m hoping to solidify my story outline also so I know where to start certain plot points.** **

****Reviews and criticisms are welcome!** **


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